Every player dreams of being drafted. Even after illustrious careers filled with championships, MVPs, and All-NBA honors, Hall of Famers often say their fondest memory was hearing their name called by the NBA Commissioner on draft night.
While some players take their chances against the razor-thin odds of becoming an NBA player, others are fortunate enough to have father figures as ex-professionals in their corners as a guiding hand.
In the case of Golden State Warriors legend Stephen Curry , his father Dell Curry was a well-respected 16-year veteran who played a pivotal role in helping shape his path to NBA stardom. When it was time for Steph to enter the Association, despite showing tremendous upside during his three-year college career with Davidson, there were still questions about his ceiling as a high-volume 3-point shooter with a fragile frame and iffy health, causing him to slide down the draft board.
It's evident the Warriors were willing to take a chance on him as a prospect, but what people don't know is that Dell told then-head coach Don Nelson not to select him when he called that evening.
Fate is a funny thing, even in sports. In the NBA, especially, it's always fascinating to ponder what could have been if a superstar had been drafted by another franchise. Inevitably, their career would have turned out differently, and Curry was no exception.
Instead of waiting until they were officially on the clock in 2009, the Warriors' brains trust picked up the phone to feel the temperature of Curry's camp, given it was their intention to draft him with the seventh pick if he was still available. Coach Nelson was responsible for making the call, and to his surprise, Dell answered.
Needless to say, the conversation went sideways quickly, as Dell blatantly advised Nelson and the front office not to select his son.
"I said, 'No, we'd rather you not take him if he's there because we have another place we'd like him to be.' He said, 'Well, if he's there, we're going to take him,' and I said, 'That's your choice. You call me and ask me a question and I'm telling you the truth from my end,'" Curry said .
The legend goes that Dell had his sights set on New York for Steph. They had the eighth pick after the Warriors , and no one can blame him for his vision.
A blockbuster shooter, a showman, a firecracker, playing in one of the most prestigious arenas in the world, within one of the biggest markets in sport. The spotlight, the endorsements and the fandom had the family excited. Dell played in modest markets throughout his career, so envisioning the bright lights of Manhattan flashing with his last name would be appealing to any father.
Given how Curry's career has transpired, it's hard to argue that him suiting up in Madison Square Garden wouldn't have been cinema, but fate had other plans. The Warriors were determined to bring him in, and ironically, all these years later, Dell has admitted he was thankful his son didn't end up on the Knicks .
He's never been daring enough to explain his reasons, but perhaps he feels the Knicks wouldn't have been able to maximize his upside as they struggled to find their identity post-80s success and consistently came under scrutiny for their franchise management.
The Knicks may have inadvertently lost the Curry sweepstakes, but there's solace in knowing they weren't the only ones. At the time, Blake Griffin was the consensus number one pick, but after him, it was anyone's guess on who would ascend to the upper echelon of the class.
It turns out that just about everyone else, taken after Griffin and before Curry, never remotely reached their heights, except for James Harden , who has become an MVP and one of the great all-time scorers.
Hasheem Thabeet of UCONN went to the Memphis Grizzlies at number two, the Oklahoma City Thunder took Harden with the third pick, the Sacramento Kings selected Tyreke Evans at four and the Minnesota Timberwolves decided to draft Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn with picks five and six.
In NBA history, it's rare for a franchise to have back-to-back picks that high in the lottery. That's why the Timberwolves' decision not to use either on Curry might be the biggest blunder in draft history.
It also speaks to a very real but painful reality — that draft night can make or break a franchise. Time after time, year after year, we look back on classes that should have shaken up differently. Given how many variables are at play for a lottery pick to fulfil its potential, it's unreasonable to assume the order will be correct, but history has shown us that getting it wrong is just about the most costly mistake a franchise can make.
The difference between building a contender or continuing a rebuild can be a single name given to the NBA Commissioner before he welcomes that prospect into the league. In the case of the Knicks, they can't feel too upset because Curry was taken off the board before they had a chance to select him. It may be disappointing given he's become arguably a top-10 player, but it was largely out of their control. In every franchise choosing before the Warriors, however, missing out on Curry could have been their best chance to date at ever competing for a title.
The Los Angeles Clippers are still searching even after a relatively successful run with Griffin. The Thunder won their first title this past season, 12 years after Harden was traded, and the Grizzlies, Kings and Timberwolves have never even reached the NBA Finals.
It's inevitable that if Curry were on any of their rosters, the course of their history would have shifted. The consequences of getting it right on draft night can set you up for the next decade; the consequences of getting it wrong can set you back even longer.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 1, 2025, where it first appeared in the Old School section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
