CBSSports- Curry went seventh overall in that draft, behind back-to-back point-guard picks by the Wolves -- Ricky Rubio at No. 5 and Jonny Flynn at No. 6. And now, years later, the three-point specialist has revealed a story he once heard about why then-Minnesota executive David Kahn opted to steer clear of Curry despite two opportunities to take him.
"I don't know if that ever came out -- that's a story," Curry said on The Bill Simmons Podcast this week. "Everybody knows how much I love golf -- play it in my spare time and whatnot ... I think the word on the street was that he [Kahn] didn't draft me because, in Minnesota, it's cold and I wouldn't be able to play as much golf, so I would have been miserable." -------- First things first, there is exactly a zero percent chance that this "story" has even a hint of truth to it. A tongue-in-cheek "explanation" for the stupidity required to select Jonny Flynn ahead of Steph Curry that somewhere along the line morphed into something that could be loosely defined as a rumor? Probably. A legit reason as to why the Timberwolves ended up passing on a player who beat the odds to become one of the best shooters in league history, as well as the valedictorian of the new school of scoring point guards, to select someone who played in as many NBA seasons as the player he was picked in front of has NBA Finals? No f'n chance. The thought of a President of Basketball Operations looking at a prospective lottery pick like he were a potential client in trying to cater to his love of golf is abjectly preposterous. Yet somehow, it's matched in ridiculousness by the idea that said President of Basketball Operations would be left with anything other than a cold, barren prospect pool if he was intent on filling it only with people that are at their happiest during the depressing dead of winter in the middle of Minneapolis. Plus, as if this weren't an absurd enough theory as is, believing in it would require you to think that sports' executives genuinely give a damn if their players are well-rounded individuals with outside interests and an optimistic view on life. Hell, if David Kahn had altered the course of history by selecting Steph Curry, I'm willing to bet he'd have been more likely to have been caught flooding the greens at the local links than booking tee times for the prepubescent looking kid whose development as a basketball player was tied directly to his job security. If anything, not having immediate, year-round access to his favorite hobby would have been a plus in Steph Curry's pros column, as it would have forced him into shooting J's in a snow covered gym during his down time throughout the season. That's far more preferable to a General Manager than his most promising player having a fulfilling life away from basketball. Therefore, we're just going to have to continue blaming organizational incompetence, because - seeing as we're talking about the NBA Draft and not divorce court - it's certainly not golf's fault.
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