Stephen Curry
Wardell Stephen Curry II (/ˈstɛfən/ STEF-ən; born March 14, 1988)[1] is an American professional basketball player and point guard for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely regarded as the greatest shooter and one of the greatest players of all time, Curry is credited with revolutionizing the sport by inspiring teams and players to take more three-point shots.[2][3][4][5] He is a four-time NBA champion, a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), an NBA Finals MVP, an NBA All-Star Game MVP, and was named the inaugural NBA Western Conference Finals MVP. He is also a two-time NBA scoring champion, a ten-time NBA All-Star, a nine-time All-NBA selection (including four on the First Team), and has won two gold medals at the FIBA World Cup as part of the U.S. men's national team.
For other people named Stephen Curry, see Stephen Curry (disambiguation).No. 30 – Golden State Warriors
March 14, 1988
Akron, Ohio, U.S.
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
Davidson (2006–2009)
2009: 1st round, 7th overall pick
2009–present
Curry is the son of former NBA player Dell Curry and the older brother of current NBA player Seth Curry. He played collegiately for the Davidson Wildcats, where he set career scoring records for Davidson and the Southern Conference, and helped the Wildcats advance to the Elite Eight in 2008. He was named Conference Player of the Year twice, and set the NCAA single-season record for three-pointers made (162) during his sophomore year. Curry was selected by the Warriors as the seventh overall pick in the 2009 NBA draft.
In 2014–15, Curry won his first league MVP award and led the Warriors to their first championship since 1975. The following season, he became the first player to be elected MVP by a unanimous vote and lead the league in scoring while shooting above 50–40–90. That same year, the Warriors broke the record for the most wins in a regular season in NBA history (73) en route to the 2016 NBA Finals, which they lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 7. Curry helped the Warriors win back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018, and reach the 2019 NBA Finals, losing to the Toronto Raptors in six games. Following injury struggles and missed playoff appearances in 2020 and 2021, Curry won his fourth championship with the Warriors and first Finals MVP award, defeating the Boston Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals. The same season, he became the all-time leader in three-pointers made in NBA history, surpassing Ray Allen.[6]
Curry is the holder of numerous other records, notably for his efficiency and three-point shooting. He has the highest career free-throw percentage in NBA history (91.0%) and has led the league in three-pointers made a record eight times. In 2013, he set the NBA record for three-pointers made in a regular season with 272, surpassed that record in 2015 (286), and again in 2016 (402).
Early life
Curry is the son of Sonya and Dell Curry. He was born in Akron, Ohio, at Summa Akron City Hospital, while his father was a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers.[7][8] He grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina, where his father spent most of his NBA career with the Charlotte Hornets.[9] Dell often took Curry and his younger brother Seth to his games, where they would shoot with the Hornets during warm-ups.[10] The family briefly moved to Toronto, where Dell finished out his career as a member of the Raptors.[9] During this time, Curry played for the Queensway Christian College boys' basketball team, leading them to an undefeated season.[11][12] He was also a member of Toronto 5–0, a club team that plays across Ontario,[13][14] pitting him against fellow future NBA players Cory Joseph and Kelly Olynyk.[14] Curry led the team to a 33–4 record, en route to winning the provincial championship.[15]
After Dell's retirement, the family moved back to Charlotte and Curry enrolled at Charlotte Christian School,[16] where he was named all-conference and all-state, and led his team to three conference titles and three state playoff appearances. Because of his father's storied career at Virginia Tech, Curry wanted to play college basketball for the Hokies, but was only offered a walk-on spot due in part to his slender 160-pound frame.[17] He ultimately chose to attend Davidson College, who had aggressively recruited him from the tenth grade.[18]
College career
Freshman season
Before Curry even played in his first game for the Wildcats, head coach Bob McKillop praised him at a Davidson alumni event, saying: "Wait 'til you see Steph Curry. He is something special."[19] In his first collegiate game against Eastern Michigan, Curry finished with 15 points but committed 13 turnovers. In the next game against Michigan, he scored 32 points, dished out four assists, and grabbed nine rebounds. Curry finished the season leading the Southern Conference in scoring with 21.5 points per game. He was second in the nation among freshmen in scoring, behind only Kevin Durant of Texas. Curry's scoring helped the Wildcats to a 29–5 overall record and a Southern Conference regular-season title. On March 2, 2007, in the Southern Conference tournament semi-finals against Furman, Curry made his 113th three-point field goal of the year, breaking Keydren Clark's NCAA freshman season record for three-pointers.[20]
Curry eclipsed the school freshman scoring record with his 502nd point against Chattanooga on February 6, 2007.[21] On March 15, 2007, Davidson marched into the NCAA tournament as a 13th seed set to play Maryland; despite Curry's game-high 30 points, Davidson lost 82–70.[22] At the end of his freshman season, Curry was named Southern Conference Freshman of the Year, SoCon Tournament MVP, and selected to the SoCon All-tournament team, All-freshman team, and All-SoCon First Team.[23] He was also an honorable mention in Sports Illustrated's All-Mid-Major. After the season ended, he was selected for the USA team to appear at the 2007 FIBA U19 World Championships in which he averaged 9.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 19.4 minutes, helping Team USA to a silver medal finish.[24]
Player profile
Listed at 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) and 185 pounds (86 kg), Curry plays almost exclusively at the point guard position combined with the signature play style of an elite shooting guard. He has career averages of 24.8 points, 6.4 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game (through the end of the 2023–24 season),[80] and is the Warriors' all-time points, assists, steals, field goals, three-point field goals, and free-throw percentage leader in both the regular season and the playoffs.[265] His career free throw percentage of 91.0% is the highest in NBA history, and he has led the league in annual free-throw percentage four times.[266][267] He has been named league MVP twice, including the first unanimous selection in league history (2015–16).[80] Regarded as a selfless leader and the face of the Warriors dynasty,[268][269] the management built the franchise around Curry and drafted players, including former MVP Kevin Durant in 2017, to maximise its rosters' capabilities.[269][270]
Lauded for his prolific three-point shooting, athleticism, and versatile playmaking, Curry is a potent offensive threat from underneath the rim to near half-court.[271][272] Using an unorthodox jump shot, he is capable of releasing the ball in under half a second upon jumping, adding greater arc to his shots and making them difficult to block.[273] Therefore, Curry is able to adjust his release and balance to make shots from virtually anywhere on the court. For his high shooting proficiency and ball-handling, he has been referred to as the "Baby-Faced Assassin" since his collegiate basketball years[274] and "Chef Curry" while playing in the NBA.[275] For their shooting abilities, Curry and teammate Klay Thompson are often referred to as the Splash Brothers. In the 2013–14 season, they set the record for combined three-pointers made in a season with 484, a record they broke the following season (525), and again in the 2015–16 season (678). Curry is also known for putting pressure on defenses with his long range and led the league in field goals made from beyond 28 feet in the 2015–16 season.[276] A clutch scorer, he often shoots at his best in high-pressure moments and takes game-winning shots.[277][278]
Curry is also a notably efficient scorer with a career true shooting percentage of 62.6%, ranking as the 5th most of all time. His career three-point field goal percentage of 42.5% ranks as the 12th most of all time, while attempting over nine three-pointers per game (the most in NBA history). He has a career effective field goal percentage of 58.2% and is the only player in league history to join the 50–40–90 club while averaging over 30 points per game. He also has the highest true shooting percentage (66.9%) and effective field goal percentage (63%) in a season (2015–16) in league history, while attempting over 20 field goals per game.[279][280] He holds four of the top-five seasons with most three-pointers made, led by his NBA record 402 three-pointers from the 2015–16 season, and has served as the annual leader a record eight times.[281][282][283] He is also the fastest player in league history to make 2,000 career three-pointers, doing so in 227 fewer games than the previous record-holder, Ray Allen.[138] Additionally, Curry is the fastest player to make 100 three-pointers in a season, doing so in just 19 games, breaking his own previous record of 20 games.[284]
Owing to his offensive presence, Curry's scoring creates a "gravity" effect, forcing opposing defenders to frequently double-team him during both on-ball and off-ball movement, which creates mismatches that his teammates exploit.[285][286] With Curry, the Warriors average 10.8 isolations per game; without Curry, they average 15.3 isolations per game. His absence slows the Warriors offense and leads to less passing and ball movement. With Curry, the Warriors average 1.05 points every shot that comes after an off-ball screen; without Curry, it drops to 0.95 points per game. His absence makes it much easier for defenders to switch on screens. Of Curry's success with or without other elite teammates, NBC Sports' Tom Haberstroh said, "You can pluck All-Star after All-Star off the court like flower petals, and the Steph-led Warriors will still dominate like a champion. He's that transcendent of a player."[287]
Curry's relatively smaller size impeded his defensive skills for the majority of his career.[288][289] He generally leverages his fast-paced movement and reflexes to break defenses, while his long-standing teammates, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, provide more rigorous defensive contributions.[289] Some analysts, including Ethan Sherwood Strauss of ESPN, have complimented his defensive play or called it underrated.[288][290] Strauss said in 2015 that Curry became "one of the NBA's most effective defenders – ranking fifth among point guards in defensive real plus-minus."[290] Curry led the league in total steals in the 2014–15 season and steals per game in the following season.[291]
NBA
NCAA
United States National Team
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Media
Academy Awards
State/Local
NCAA
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Golden State Warriors