While most high school players strive to showcase their best performance to impress college recruiters, Stephen Curry ’s experience was notably different. During a game observed by Davidson’s head coach Bob McKillop, the 3-Point King delivered an ‘awful’ performance, seemingly confirming his status as merely a three-point recruit. As the Division I colleges appeared confident in not banking on a point guard who lacked the height or strength to make waves in collegiate basketball, McKillop was left impressed by something beyond those.
McKillop on watching Steph play
Top college scouts typically write off a kid if they spot even a single bad game. However, when Bob went over to Las Vegas to witness Steph’s AAU Tournament game, the latter’s lackluster showings allowed him to see his demeanor and true character.
"We went to see him play in Vegas in an AAU tournament the summer before his senior year," McKillop said . "He was awful. He threw the ball into the stands, he dropped passes, he dribbled off his foot, he missed shots. But never once during that game did he blame an official, or point a finger at a teammate. He was always cheering from the bench, he looked in his coaches eyes, and he never flinched. That stuck with me."
Safe to say, McKillop’s admission serves as a reminder for high school talents that athleticism and natural skills aren’t the only factors recruiters consider. But how one handles themself in tough situations is just as important to them.
Curry stood tall in the faith shown by Bob
Initially, McKillop’s decision to trust the undersized PG seemed like a total disaster when he logged 13 turnovers in his debut games against Eastern Michigan. However, not only did the ‘Baby-Faced Assassin’ redeem himself by dropping a 32-point masterpiece against Michigan the next time when the two met, but he concluded his freshman year with a scoring average of 21.5 points per game, only second to Kevin Durant of Texas.
His exceptional debut season earned him accolades like Southern Conference Freshman of the Year, SoCon Tournament MVP, and selections into the SoCon All-Tournament Team as well as All-SoCon First Team.
More importantly, during his three-season spell at Davidson, Curry led the Wildcats to a combined record of 78-23 and appearances in the NCAA Tournament in each year. He also propelled the team to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1969.
Having averaged 28.6 points per game in his junior year, Steph’s noteworthy showings were a testament to McKillop’s talent assessment but, more importantly, were a slap in the faces of all those Division I college recruiters who neglected his potential because of his ordinary physical attributes.
Related: "I've never had one that combines greatness in talent and greatness in personhood" - Curry's Davidson coach on what makes Steph so special
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