GREENBURGH — Moments before Stephen Curry walked in to meet the media Wednesday afternoon after his predraft workout at the Knicks’ training facility, coach Mike D’Antoni told him New York couldn’t draft him.
“I said, Oh, why?'” Curry said. “He said, ‘Because Allan Houston said he doesn’t want to be the second-best shooter in Knicks’ history.'”
Still, the Davidson guard would like to have the chance if he is still available when the Knicks’ turn comes up at the eighth spot in the NBA Draft.
“I played (in Madison Square Garden) this year against West Virginia,” said Curry, who shot well during the workout. “If I can get that experience 41 times, I mean who can beat that. The fans, you’ve got to play well. They’re going to love you. If you’re out there and you are giving it your all and your team is winning, doing well, it should be fun. Lot of legacy there. Lot of history. To suit up for the Knicks, then that would be great.”
The Knicks’ current starting point guard is Chris Duhon, who is under contract for one more year. Even if the Knicks want Curry, the Washington Wizards and Minnesota Timberwolves could also be in need of a point guard and have the fifth and sixth picks, respectively. Curry will visit the Wizards for a workout next week.
A shooting guard his first two college seasons, Curry slid over to the point as a junior and averaged 28.6 points to lead Division I in scoring.
“I’m a point guard who has the ability to move over. If I need to run the floor and somebody else gets the ball and brings it down the court, I guess you can call that a combo,” Curry said. “But with my experiences last year at Davidson playing the point full time, (it) really improved my skills in that department and managing the game and the team throughout the season. That helped me improve myself as a player.”
There are still questions and concerns about whether 6-foot-3 Curry can be a floor leader in the NBA, but he’s not listening to them.
“I’ve heard criticism and doubts my whole life, so it’s not going to faze me,” Curry said. “I know it’s going to be a challenge going from a small D-I school to the NBA where every night you got Chris Paul one night, Steve Nash another night. You got LeBron (James) and Kobe (Bryant) back-to-back.”
Speaking of James, the NBA MVP can become a free agent next summer, and Curry counts the Cleveland forward as a friend. James has helped with the hype and anticipation of the draft and the workouts, and if Curry ends up in New York, he will try to persuade James to join him.
“I got him on the text message contact list, so I would be dropping lines if I’m here trying to get him to come next year,” Curry said.