Programming note: Watch the pregame edition of Warriors Outsiders Friday night at 6 p.m. PT streaming live on the MyTeams app.
Steph Curry wasn't supposed to be this good. The only unanimous MVP in NBA history wasn't supposed to transform the Warriors from perennial losers into a powerhouse NBA franchise.
But here we are.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
On Wednesday morning, the three-time champion wrote an incredible article on The Players' Tribune announcing that he is launching something called "The Underrated Tour." The mission:
"To create a basketball camp, in partnership with Rakuten, for any unsigned high school players rated three stars and below. A camp for kids who love to hoop, and are looking for the chance to show scouts that their perceived weaknesses might actually be their secret strengths."
This is awesome and not surprising when you consider who Curry is at his core. After all, he was an undersized kid in high school who never got an offer from a traditional college powerhouse. Curry, as a high schooler, would have been perfect for "The Underrated Tour" himself.
So why is the five-time All-Star built this way? Well, he started off his article by sharing a story from his childhood that had a profound impact on him.
Golden State Warriors
[REWIND: Steph Curry details the one mandatory scene if movie made about his life]
Here's what happened during the summer of 2001 when a 13-year old Curry had a terrible game at the AAU national championships in Tennessee:
I remember getting back to our hotel room — and just sulking. Like, I wasn’t being a hothead. I wasn’t mad at losing. I was just…… down. I was in my turtle shell. I was feeling…. well, I guess I was feeling how we’re really all taught to feel by these big tournaments, and this cutthroat basketball culture: like we’re walking down some do-or-die path. My dad took that path, and he made it to the league. And his son? His son couldn’t even make a mark against some other 13-year-olds. So like I said, I wasn’t heated. I was more just, like — Oh, O.K. That’s it? I’m not good enough? This is…. over?
For me, in that moment, it pretty much WAS over. But it was also in that moment that my parents sat me down — at that Holiday Inn in Tennessee — and gave me what I’d call probably the most important talk of my entire life. I wish I had the transcript for you, since there were some real gems in there. Basically, though? My Mom took the lead. She said, "Steph, I’m only going to tell you this one time. After that, this basketball dream….. it’s going to be what it’s going to be. But here’s what I’ll say:
NO ONE gets to write your story but you. Not some scouts. Not some tournament. Not these other kids, who might do this better or that better. And not EVER your last name. None of those people, and none of those things, gets to be the author of your story. Just you. So think real hard about it. Take your time. And then you go and write what you want to write. But just know that this story — it’s yours."
Man…. that moment stuck with me.
So basically -- the whole world needs to thank Sonya and Dell Curry.
And I suppose we should also thank the AAU team that dominated Curry nearly 18 years ago ...
Drew Shiller is the co-host of Warriors Outsiders. Follow him on Twitter @DrewShiller