Meet Bob McKillop — the man that Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry claims he learned "everything" from. He stepped down as head coach of the Davidson Wildcats in 2022; the 33-year veteran coach saw plenty of ups and downs.
He went through the streams of crowning victories and the grieve of downing losses. But undoubtedly, his legacy took a transformational step once he crossed paths with a scrawny-looking kid with a baby face.
"I was 11," Curry said , asked about when he first met McKillop. "I played AAU baseball with his son Brendan. I knew he coached college basketball and I knew where Davidson was, but I didn't know anything about his legacy until high school, and I heard his name during recruiting time. I did some research, and I was like, 'I know him.'"
All tendencies have an origin. For Curry, he tends to play like a superstar every time he takes the court. But beyond that, he has a knack for shooting shots that no player before him had the moxie to pull off. That rare confidence comes from somewhere deep-rooted.
"He told me when I was a freshman that I had license to shoot any shot I wanted but I'd have to work for it,” the former Davidson star said. I'd have to put in the time and actually commit to learning on the job. Even when I failed early freshman year, he stayed in my ear because he saw my potential before I did."
Unlocking his potential
Before the NBA, Curry was buoyant in his approach — maybe a little too even-keeled. He played with an edge, a force — but with striking nonchalance and almost unyielding carelessness. Once his coach put that bottle of confidence in him, he felt that he could do no wrong.
At just 19 years old, the "Baby-faced assassin" skyrocketed his 3-point attempts to over 10 a game. His field goal attempts went from 15.4 as a rookie up to 18.2 as a sophomore.
"I thought we had a game changer," McKillop said. "You never think of it as revolutionary as it's going on. You're just thinking he's the right guy taking the right shot at the right time because he's making it."
Hearing that from a no-joke head coach about a shot-happy guard was rare. This is what a point in history when shooting any volume of 3-pointers more than 2-pointers was frowned upon. Yet, there was something about Steph — dapper, baby-ish in appearance, humble, often wearing a crisp collar — that McKillop loved.
On the court, the fire inside him was visible. Perhaps in his then-23 years of coaching, he hadn't encountered a player who played with so much confidence than it looked like he had from the outside. To his credit, he let Steph keep the keys. He let him have his way and have fun — it resulted in producing college basketball's most dazzling performer.
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Tipping his cap
15 years in, Curry has authored a legacy good enough to rank him in the top 10 of the game's greatest players. Two summers ago, the guard captured his first Finals MVP — months after breaking Ray Allen's record for the most 3-pointers ever — and cemented his legacy.
Three summers before that, he earned his fifth straight trip to the NBA Finals. Going back to 2016 — Curry put his stamp of approval on becoming the face of basketball as he captured his second MVP as the only unanimous winner ever.
None of that would've happened if his coach hadn't take a chance on his on-court mischief 6 years before his first league MVP. Does Steph Curry think he is the one responsible for making McKillop's legacy?
"No. No, he expressed confidently. He is part of mine, but his name is basically synonymous with Davidson basketball. He had opportunities to go elsewhere, but he stayed there, he stayed there, and at a school with basically 1,900 students, look at what he's built," he concluded.
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