Stephen in the Journal

As told to Meg Kimmel on page 20 of the Summer issue:

It’s interesting. Going in, I didn’t see Davidson as the best fit for me. You could say I was basketball motivated. I mean, I was excited, but a little hesitant. I could not imagine what it would be like. So I guess one of of the best lessons from Davidson is not to go into a situation judging what it will be like. Being open to things. Because you never know.

Also this:

When I was making this NBA decision, I wasn't worried about missing basketball -- I knew I would have basketball. But giving up being a student -- I just loved all of that, the social aspect. Giving that up before I had to, that was the hardest part. ... I loved being a Davidson student. I loved every bit of it.

Missed this one

Steve on Steph: “Stephen’s even better than most people think he is.”

Translating couch potato

Someone named Ed Weiland:

I’m having some trouble warming up to Curry, but unlike with Flynn I really can’t say for sure that he’s overrated. He’s like Westbrook last year. There was nothing in Westbrook’s numbers that suggested he’d be as good as he was, but there was also nothing that indicated he wouldn’t. Curry is the same way. I still see a 6’1” gunner who was a great scorer at the small college level. I still have my doubts about whether he can play the point or not, which will be necessary if he’s going to be a special player. But there’s no one stat I can point that says he can’t. The fact that several NBA teams seem to love this guy is probably a good sign. It’s also good that he’s going to the Warriors where his offense will be valued and put to good use.

In other words: I don’t know much, or anything, really, but I’ll just keep typing.

An A from SI

Scott Howard-Cooper of SI.com gives the Warriors a good grade in the back of the mag this week: “Got the perfect fit in Stephen Curry (No. 7) -- he can pick apart a defense, and this offense will get him a lot of shots.” (On SI.com: “Let it rain.”)

Claire last week

From her journal to my inbox:

It’s cool. It’s so cool. I’m really excited for him, and proud.

But about thirty minutes ago I watched his press conference in Oakland (he’s already THERE. Wow.) and I just burst into tears. I don’t really remember why, what triggered it. Maybe the whole thing, the weirdness of seeing him so professionalized. Because it’s strange knowing he’s so far away, so separate. Because sometimes, even though I was there and have watched it all happen, sometimes I can’t actually comprehend how he went from Steph Curry December 1 2006 to Steph Curry June 26 2009. How he did things to make this happen. Even though I was there the whole time. I switched back and forth between today’s presser and his post-Gonzaga interview in the locker room, listening to his voice and his tone, trying to make it from that moment to this moment in my mind.

And then I cried harder. Because this little boy said “I got to meet Stephen Curry for the first time today and I’m very excited!” And then he went up and asked Steph why he wears #30. And Stephen smiled down at him and went on about Dell and how it’s a family number and he looked this little boy straight in the eyes and said, “And I started wearing it my freshman year at Davidson College --” and he was smiling and I was sobbing. And then, as the little boy turned to leave, Steph grinned and said, “Thanks for your question, man.” THIS MAN IS GOING TO DO SO MUCH GOOD.

I have no doubt in my mind, and I can’t get over that. I can’t get over being tied to him as part of our collective community and seeing him up there now ...

I just lost it. Because I don’t know if I will ever find the right words to explain. I WATCHED him become this and it’s still unfathomable. I witnessed children (and adults) begin wearing #30 jerseys because they love Davidson, they know him, he’s one of our own, he’s damn good. And now (suddenly? Not suddenly, but it feels like it) it has exploded so far beyond Belk Arena -- 3000 miles -- and I just can’t quite wrap my head or my hands or my heart around that. It almost doesn’t feel real.

Left over from last week

Gary Parrish:

That’s why Davidson worked for Curry.

He immediately got on the court.

He immediately showed he’s a special talent.

And it didn’t matter that he was barely on TV through his first two years of college (except for the NCAA tournament) or that he didn’t “do it every night” in the Big 12 or Pac-10. All that mattered was that he performed when placed on a stage, at which point the NBA found him and made him a rich man.

McKillop: “A lot’s to be said for the role you play. You can be in the chorus or you can be the lead singer. You can be one of the dancers or you can be the dancer.”

Why that trade won’t happen

David Aldridge: No one expected that pick to be Stephen Curry, the Davidson guard who was the top player on Golden State’s board. Everyone figured that Curry would be long gone by then, either to Minnesota or a team that traded up to take him with one of the Wolves’ picks. But Curry slipped to the Warriors, who know what a perfect fit he’ll be in Don Nelson’s system and have no intention of including him in any trade with Phoenix.

Tim Kawakami blogging

Here: I think Curry’s camp also played this classily. They were going to accept the Warriors’ selection and not go all Ricky Rubio on the process. The Warriors front office LOVED that about Curry.

Not really, dude

Eric Dorval at NESN:

Curry’s departure will almost certainly spell doom for Davidson’s chances of making a NCAA tournament any time soon. How much will it hurt, you ask? Well, when Larry Bird left mid-major Indiana State after leading them to the 1979 NCAA finals, the Sycamores did not even make the Big Dance again until 2000, 21 years later. We’re not talking about Kansas or Duke. At Davidson, you don’t reload, you unload. That’s just the way it is.

Wrong.

Jip is Johnny on the spot:

Davidson is nothing like Indiana State. Indiana State had never reached a Division 1 NCAA Tournament prior to 1979 (Bird’s senior season). Davidson had 8 NCAA Tournament appearences prior to the Steph Curry era, including two Elite Eights, and a tournament bid the year before Steph arrived. Davidson also has one of the best coaches in the country. After the 2005-2006 season, Davidson lost 7 seniors and over 70% of their scoring, they “RELOADED” and made two straight NCAA Tournaments. The Wildcat recruiting is getting better every year, returning players are waiting to step up and prove Davidson is more than just Stephen Curry. Curry’s departure will not spell doom for Davidson’s chances of making a NCAA tournament any time soon.

From last week

Jaletta Albright Desmond: I trust he’ll continue to be the admirable young man he’s been to this point, and serve as a role model of modesty, graciousness, discipline, and determination for tens of thousands of potential young fans, rather than the smaller hometown crowd. You can bet that wherever he goes, I’ll be cheering him on as he chases his dreams and encourages other kids to dream, work hard, and make their own good decisions along the way. Also here.

‘Of’-ness, continued

Claire:

This kid that we’ve literally, point A to point B to point C to point D, watched grow into this ... thing bigger than himself and yet all the while remain himself -- will always be Stephen of Davidson. That’s our choice -- the facebook statuses, the text messages, the emails and phone calls back and forth in the summertime because we’re watching the same thing on the screen and we’re not together but we want to be because this is important, dammit (think Easter 2008), this is OUR BOY -- but it’s also his choice. And in the midst of his dream coming true, we are still his. He is still ours. Through signs and smiles and Dell curved into his chair just like he curves in his mid-court seat and Sonya biting her lip and their son’s pure quiet excitement that makes me think of the 18-year-old he was, who beamed and stuck out his tongue because the crowd was roaring and that was just so much fun (oh man, we had no idea) ... through the shared memories and everpresent acknowledgment, spoken and unspoken, of ten days when we were suddenly on top of the world (and only he, and we, can really know how that felt, only) ... Through all of these, and through that welling up feeling, that heart-in-throat feeling when I heard his name for the what number? time (not in a classroom, not in a starting lineup, not on Kilgo, not on The Davidson Show) and saw him duck his head and stand up and smile -- he kept being ours. He re-became ours. Different but the same. Hell, we’re all ________ of Davidson. Your name there. My name there. His name there.

That’s what it is.

Unfazed

Marcus Thompson:

The Currys, who hail from Charlotte, N.C., are the typical Southern family -- massive and down-to-earth. Curry has no shortage of aunties and uncles, cousins and family friends to keep him grounded.

To them, he isn’t the baby-faced Davidson rock star, or the answer to the Warriors’ troubles. He’s just Wardell Stephen Curry II.

“He ain’t changed one bit,” said Warriors second-year guard Anthony Morrow, who has been friends with Curry since the two played against each other while at rival Charlotte high schools. “Not even exaggerating. He is the same Steph from when he was in high school. Great kid.”

Also of note: The game that sold Larry Riley on Stephen Curry? Purdue.

The company you keep

Scott: Roy Williams, Rick Pitino, John Calipari, Bob McKillop, Jeff Capel -- you could have held quite a college coaching clinic in a 20-yard radius in that NBA green room.

Looks like gratitude

His new place

Don Nelson: “I should be clear about that. He wasn’t drafted for somebody else. He is not going to be traded. He was drafted because we think he is going to be a terrific player, and he’s going to be right here. So he can unpack his bags, he can relax, go buy a house because he ain’t goin’ anyplace.”

The word in the Bay Area

Bruce Jenkins: The Warriors just acquired a 21-year-old player who will be a star in the NBA for years to come. DavidsonNews.net.

The Sports Guy

From Bill Simmons’ draft diary:

A disappointed Stern announces that the Warriors picked Curry -- really, it was like the opposite of the Rubio announcement -- followed by New York’s crowd reacting like offices in Wall Street after the O.J. verdict. Too bad. “D’Antoni Ball + Curry = magic.” We’ll never know.

Also: There is no bigger Curry fan than I am. He’s going to be a star. I have no doubt.

What he’ll make

Next year: $2.26 million. Goes up from there.

How long will he be a Warrior?

Stephen on the trade talks: “I hope I go to sleep a Warrior. So right now I see myself as a Warrior.” More from the Merc. Chron. And Ratto. Also Scott.

Congratulations Stephen