“They kind of sold me on that dream but they had the eighth pick… I didn’t work out for Golden State” - Steph Curry says he wanted to get drafted by the New York Knicks
Golden State Warriors guard Steph Curry almost became the New York Knicks' point guard during the 2009 NBA draft. The Knicks had already sold the superstar on joining the team.
Curry has become, statistically, the best shooter of all time as Golden State's point guard, but he once thought he was going to be drafted elsewhere.
Before the 2009 draft, Curry was sold on being selected by the New York Knicks, who had the eighth pick. He recently spoke about the situation with Warriors' teammate Draymond Green during "The Draymond Green Show."
"I always wanted to go to New York," Curry said. "That was it. Like, I was trying to find my way there. (Coach) Mike D'Antoni was there; Danilo Gallinari was there; our future teammate David Lee. Like, it was supposed to be like the run-and-gun type Phoenix Suns 2.0 offense.
"I was supposed to be point guard there, and they kind of sold me on that dream but they had the eighth pick, so I wanted to go there. I didn't work out for Golden State. I didn't come out here before the draft."
Steph Curry believed he would be the Knicks' point guard so much that he had mixed feelings about Golden State selecting him with the seventh pick.
"Seventh pick came around, called my name, I had like mixed emotions, because you know it's a dream come true to get drafted no matter where it is, but I was like, 'That was not on my radar.'"
While Curry did not have the Warriors on his radar in the 2009 draft, the move ultimately worked out for him and not for New York.
The New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors have gone in different directions since the Steph Curry pick
The 2009 NBA draft saw the Warriors draft their new face of the franchise with the seventh overall pick before the Knicks could draft Steph Curry.
Since the Warriors surprised Curry by selecting him, the team emerged as a dynasty, and Curry has become the league's best shooter.
The Knicks finish the season seven games under .500 with a 37-45 record...
And how about this disheartening factoid:
New York has won more than 37 games in a season just four times this century.
During the 2010s, the Golden State Warriors were in the top five in regular-season wins, whereas New York were in the bottom five.
Golden State went through a stretch of seven straight playoff appearances, including three championships and five NBA Finals appearances. They are a No. 3 seed this season.
Meanwhile, New York has had 10 losing seasons. The Knicks have made four playoff appearances, with three of those ending in first-round exits. New York missed the postseason entirely this season.
While it is impossible to know how good Curry would have been in New York compared to the Warriors, it would be hard to be worse.
The Knicks picked Arizona big man Jordan Hill, who played for five teams in eight seasons. He averaged 7.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game in his career. His best year was with the LA Lakers in 2014-15, when he averaged 12.0 ppg and got 57 of his 120 career starts.
Hill made three 3-pointers (on 22 attempts) in his career, which ended in 2017.
Curry has made 3,117 3-pointers.