"The coach that we had didn't believe that much in Steph and would bench him a lot, get on him, yell at him" - Jeremy Lin shares how Steph Curry struggled early in his NBA career
Before Steph Curry became one of the greatest players in NBA history, he had to endure hardships early in his career. Curry was hampered by ankle injuries and a head coach who did not trust him.
In an interview with Sky Sports, Curry's former teammate Jeremy Lin discussed the hardships the four-time champion had to endure in his second season in the league.
Lin explained that then-Warriors head coach Keith Smart often benched Curry despite the fact that the two-time MVP was putting up great numbers.
"I was with him my rookie year," Lin said. "The coach that we had didn't believe that much in Steph and would bench him a lot, get on him, yell at him a lot, was just really tough on him. It almost became normal that every fourth quarter, he would get benched for a certain stretch."
"I felt that would shake any player to some degree. And even though his confidence would kind of waver a little bit – because of the way that he was being coached – he had a deep, deep, very strong belief that he was a great player and that he would become a great player."
Smart was fired after Curry's sophomore season. He was replaced by Mark Jackson, who helped unlock the Splash Brothers' potential. Curry and Klay Thompson changed the landscape of the NBA with their 3-point shooting.
Fast forward to 2015, Curry won his first championship. He added three more, in 2017, 2018 and 2022. He became the greatest shooter the game has ever seen and changed the game of basketball forever.
Lin explained that Curry always had belief in his own abilities and the confidence to make any shot he wanted to.
"There's just this aura that he had of, 'There's no shot I can't hit. I can hit and I can catch fire at any point,'" Lin said. "'If you give me one shot and it goes in, you might be in trouble the rest of the night.' He was always believing in who he was and how he could play, and the shots he can make, and sticking to it."
Steph Curry could add more championships to his resume
Steph Curry will be 35 years old by the time the playoffs start next year. However, he has not shown any signs of slowing down. He struggled from beyond the arc last season, but caught fire in the playoffs. He took over the NBA Finals, leading the Golden State Warriors to their fourth championship since 2015.
The Warriors are built to win for the next few years. That means Curry has a chance to add more titles to his already stacked resume.