The man who is 50 percent responsible for giving us a fresh new American sports icon is often tortured, because he can’t always enjoy the show and feel his jaw hitting the floor like everyone else.
While his son is busy shattering NBA shooting records and gradually earning one-name recognition from the masses — “Steph” is all you need now — Dell Curry is often busy at work. He is a TV analyst for the Charlotte Hornets and the NBA schedule doesn’t always cut the Currys some slack.
But last Saturday in Atlanta brought an off-night for Dell. In these situations while on the road, he’ll catch a Golden State Warriors game at a local sports bar. This time he retreated to his hotel room, where his neighbors certainly heard a loud yell and maybe a fall-off-the-chair thump just before midnight Eastern.
“I get asked all the time about what it’s like to watch him play, and actually, Kemba Walker just came up to me and asked the same thing,” Curry said. “And my answer is the same: I’m a fan just like you all. I get speechless like everyone else trying to explain what I see. And when he hit that shot, I screamed just like everyone else. Whoever was in the next room, I apologize.”
That shot would be the game-winning pull-up jumper from nearly half court that broke Twitter and the hearts of the Oklahoma City Thunder. And that player is Stephen Curry, ready to replace Kobe Bryant and LeBron James as the most watchable player maybe in all pro sports, based on what he’s done the last week, month and heck, the last few seasons running.
It’s not a stretch to say Curry is laying the foundation for iconic status, for he is already an NBA champion and soon-to-be two-time Kia MVP, yet he’s still in his prime. He’s on pace to push the single-season and career 3-point records beyond reach, maybe alongside Wilt Chamberlain’s records. He’s the rare box-office behemoth who sells out arenas in February. And the Warriors, rumbling towards 70-plus wins, will fit the definition of a dynasty if they keep this up.
It also doesn’t hurt that Curry plays well in Peoria as well as he does in New York and other big markets. His personality is friendly and warm, there doesn’t appear to be a selfish fiber in his body, he projects the image of a proud family man and because of that, his appeal spreads across generations. Even Oscar Robertson’s.
Recenlty, Robertson took heat for having the audacity to utter anything that resembled anti-Curry, and his timing was brutal (it came a few days before Curry demolished the Thunder). Actually, Robertson was anti-NBA coach, not anti-Curry. To clarify, here’s what “The Big O” told ESPN’s Mike & Mike radio show:
“There have been some great shooters in the past … But here again, when I played years ago, if you shot outside and hit it, the next time I’m going to be up on top of you. I’m going to pressure you with three-quarters, half-court defense. But now they don’t do that. These coaches do not understand the game of basketball, as far as I’m concerned.”
In this social media age where everyone has a take and willing to give it, Robertson (famous for being grumpy even before this) triggered a generation vs. generation discussion that bordered on hilarity and became far too intense and, in retrospect, silly.
“The game has changed,” said Dell Curry, who played 16 NBA seasons and was a valuable sixth man and 3-point specialist with the original Hornets. “I don’t think you can compare the 90s, the 80s, the 70s to what’s happening today. Different players, different rules, different game. Those comments he made … I think they were funny. I didn’t put a lot of stock in them. That’s all I’ll say.”
A cynical observer could say that Robertson’s signature achievement — averaging a triple-double for an entire season — would be impossible had he played today. In 1961-62, when he had that magical season (in 1963-64 he just missed it again when he averaged 9.9 rebounds), teams averaged 107.7 shots per game. Last season, the Celtics led the NBA with 87.9 shots per game. Basically, when Oscar played, there were more rebounds available, which is why Wilt Chamberlain got 55 in a game. The NBA was different. Styles and players and eras evolve.
Another unflattering generational comparison came courtesy of a text from Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson, who compared Steph to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. The former Denver Nuggets guard was a solid shooter in his own right in the 1990s, yet never shot 40 percent from deep in a single season. That’s something that’s routine for Steph, whose percentage from long 3s (35 feet and beyond) is over 60 percent.
“Really?” Dell asked. “Phil wrote this?”
Pause. Sigh.
“Well, OK.”
Let it now be revealed that the last player to keep Stephen Curry in check was his father, years ago on a driveway hoop. Actually, even that’s probably a myth, because young Steph was a shooting machine pretty much the way young Tiger was on the “Mike Douglas Show”. There are 15-year-old videos of Curry now in circulation showing just that, his famous shooting form very apparent even then, when it was still under construction.
“When you see a guy in the gym that young, 8 or 9 years old, putting in the work, having fun but also very focused and serious, well of course it’s satisfying to see what he has become,” Dell Curry said. “I’m glad he was able to be around me, be around the game at a young age because it obviously had an effect on him. What he’s doing right now is great for the league, because it encourages other kids to love the game and practice. It keeps everyone interested.”
Here’s a newsflash for Robertson: NBA coaches would be foolish if they didn’t game-plan for Curry. At this point, Curry has seen every type of defense: pressing, ball-denial, double-team, triple-team. What Robertson failed to acknowledge is how Curry’s quickness and ball-handling skills set him apart from other great shooters who need a screen, and this allows him to create space between himself and the defender.
And this is even more important: Curry has Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Draymond Green and Harrison Barnes. They are all teammates who will make you pay for giving Curry too much respect.
“When he gets open, they give him the ball,” Dell Curry said. “When they get open, he finds them. I’m telling you, those guys only care about one thing, and it’s reflected in their record.”
Stephen Curry very likely has many fans among the Geritol generation. Some of them just aren’t active on social media or asked about it the way Robertson was.
Truth be told, Curry’s game is much like their own, built on fundamentals and sharpened by constant work ethic. Curry’s weapons are dribbling, passing and shooting. Isn’t that the pure basics of the game itself, the kind of skills that gets old-timers moaning about the good old days, before basketball was overtaken by highlight-raised athletes who did little more than dunk?
If anything, the players from the 1960s should thank Curry for essentially giving them a salute and perhaps influencing the next generation that skill work is the best way to go.
The flood of calls and texts and tweets from current NBA players that came after Curry’s big shot against OKC was proof that Curry gets much more respect than any skeptics trying to dent a battleship with spitballs.
“For him to be able to shoot consistently, with range and with the defense he gets, it takes a lot of focus and hard work and you have to be locked in every night,” Dell Curry said. “It’s great that his peers are recognizing that. They know what it takes. It may look easy to him but it’s not easy. It’s great that his peers recognize that. He’s changing the game.”
We haven’t heard much from one former great player in particular on the subject. Hornets owner Michael Jordan is Dell Curry’s boss, but it might surprise you that Steph doesn’t come up much in conversation.
“Michael has been part of the NBA a long time,” Dell Curry said. “He knows what’s going on. He doesn’t have to talk to me about my son. He knows what he’s seeing.”
Before he’s done talking about his son, Dell Curry wants to make one thing clear. Over the past week on the road, Steph made big shots to beat the Hawks, dropped 51 points on Orlando and then used 12 3-pointers (including the game-winner in OT) to deny the Thunder.
But none compared to his round at Augusta National between games in Atlanta and Miami.
“He’ll have more nights like he did in Oklahoma City,” said the father, speaking with the same confidence that Steph Curry shows with a hand in his face. “But that day on that course, playing with me and a great group of guys, that was magical. As much as he loves golf, Steph would agree.”
Veteran NBA writer Shaun Powell has worked for newspapers and other publications for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here or follow him on Twitter.
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