Proud papa Dell Curry beams over All-Star son

ORACLE ARENA — Becoming a great basketball player takes hard work, dedication and countless hours of studying the game.

And sometimes, genetics doesn’t hurt either.

The Curry family has proved that playing at the highest level runs in their family.

Basketball fans know who Stephen Curry is.  He’s the face of the Golden State Warriors, the current leader of most single-season three-pointers made (272), and most recently a starter for the NBA 2014 Western Conference All-Star team.

Most know Steph’s brother, Seth Curry. A star out of Duke University, Seth was invited to Golden State training camp this year and is averaging 19.6 points and 35.9 minutes per game for the D-League Santa Cruz Warriors.

But before the brothers stepped into the spotlight, their father, Dell Curry, paved the way.

Dell was a sharp-shooting guard that played in the NBA from 1986-2002, averaging 11.7 points with Charlotte (now New Orleans), Milwaukee and Toronto.

Dell Curry still holds franchise records in New Orleans for points scored and three-point shooting.

Though Dell says that Steph is his own person and has worked hard to create an identity for himself in the league, Dell said his son’s quick-release comes from his old man.

Dell is currently a TV commentator for the Charlotte Bobcats broadcasts, and was in town Tuesday to call the game.

Watching his son, Steph — who was heavily scrutinized and compared to his father — rise to one of the best point guards in the league has been a dream Dell said he never expected:

“After his freshmen year in college I thought he had the chance to be a professional player.  I didn’t know what level, whether here or overseas, but I don’t think anybody could have envisioned were he’s at right now.  That’s why making the All-Star team was such a big feat.”

Dell heard the news just like everyone else, watching the TNT broadcast that announced the All-Star starters and said it was a surreal moment:

“I was in New York, sitting in my hotel room wondering what was going to happen and I see my son come up in the starting line up and then see how many votes he got.  It’s a big deal.  I was happy.”

Steph called his father moments after the announcement and caught him in his emotions.  Dell said it hadn’t sunk in so he was choked up while talking to his son and was extremely proud.

Before the game, Dell told SFBay that being able to watch his All-Star son in person 12 days after the announcement is a moment he celebrates. He laughed as he explained that he’ll try to remain objective:

“It’s very special.  I try to stay as unbiased as I can on the game but when you’ve got an All-Star son out there, I think I can talk about him a little bit.”

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