“First Time He’s Ever Scared Me”: When 27 Y/O Steph Curry Startled Father Dell Curry During a Broadcast

We all get a kick out of catching someone we know off guard, jump-scaring them when the moment calls. Whether it’s with a family member or a friend, the stunned look on their faces is priceless. Steph Curry once caught his father, Dell, off guard during a Charlotte Hornets broadcast. The Warriors star videobombed Dell, and the reaction he got out of his father was worth the prank.

This happened in 2016, when Steph was working on his second MVP in two seasons. He was warming up for the game against the Hornets, taking some patented fun shots. For instance, he likes to end every shooting session with a 55-footer from the locker room walk-out tunnel — fun things like that. You know, the type of shot-making that makes Steph seem magical at times.

His father, Dell, a broadcaster with the Hornets, was under the impression that his son was long gone to the locker room after warm-up. Little did he know Steph was pulling a fast one on him by sneaking up on him.

“I was waiting for that to happen,” Dell joked to his fellow commentators. “You guys didn’t warn me… It’s the first time he has ever scared me!”

Dell’s reaction was hilarious. His co-commentators told Dell that his son scared them just as much as he did. The father-son duo has had other fun exchanges when they ended up at the same venue, invariably when the Warriors play the Hornets.

Steph once scared his dad during a pre-game show pic.twitter.com/i27Fv8YC4S

— What are (W)NBA Celebs Upto? (@NBACelebsUpdate) April 27, 2025

 While Steph got a scare out of his father that time, there was an occasion when Dell also left his son speechless pre-game. 

Dell once nailed a half-court heave with Steph watching

Back in 2022, when Steph was en route to winning his fourth NBA Championship, Dell surprised his son by casually hitting a near half-court 3-pointer. Since he was working with the Hornets’ broadcast team, Dell had to hit the shot while wearing a suit. Which made it all the more impressive.

“I’m the originator!” Dell exclaimed. “As Tony Montana said, ‘Who started it? Me! That’s who’.”

It’s been that kind of night for the Currys… pic.twitter.com/o2QkSaRaEy

— NBA (@NBA) February 2, 2017

Steph was in awe of his dad’s shot and couldn’t stop smiling because of it. Most likely because he banked the shot in and thought his dad got lucky. But also probably because he didn’t expect his dad to be able to hit a three in such formal attire.

Even though Dell was one of the best shooters in NBA history, that’s hard for anybody to do. 

It goes to show that the shooting runs in the Curry family genes. Dell’s skills transferred down to Steph and Seth. Now, one has to wonder how good of shooters their children are going to be one day. That type of skill isn’t learned, it’s passed down.