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[Saba Sports News] Politeness may have cost the Minnesota Timberwolves a chance at Steph Curry.
The Timberwolves are often mocked for passing on Curry twice during the 2009 NBA Draft, using the fifth and sixth picks on Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn—both point guards—instead.
A phone call with Steph’s father, former NBA player Dell Curry, may have been the reason. On their new “Heat Check” audio show, Steph and Dell Curry discussed the days leading up to the ’09 draft.
In episode three of the 10-part series, Dell revealed he warned the Timberwolves against drafting Steph. He hoped his son would be drafted eighth by the New York Knicks.
“I got a call from Minnesota asking about drafting [Steph],” Dell said via NBC Sports Bay Area. “I told them, ‘Please don’t. Please don’t.’ It was [ex-Timberwolves assistant coach] JB Bickerstaff. They said, ‘OK, we won’t.’”
“They didn’t. [The Timberwolves took] two back-to-back point guards.”
Dell had a similar conversation with former Golden State Warriors head coach Don Nelson, but Nelson ignored the advice and drafted Steph anyway.
The Warriors’ decision to draft Steph against Dell’s wishes seems to have worked out for everyone involved.