Prospect Profile: Stephen Curry

In the days leading up to the NBA's May 19 Draft Lottery, NYKnicks.com will look at the top-rated players potentially available to teams with lottery picks in the 2009 NBA Draft. We offer these profiles for fans to familiarize themselves with some of the biggest names in the draft. A player's inclusion in this series of articles is based purely on his rankings in the scouting services and mainstream media and does not necessarily reflect the Knicks organization's preferences for the June 25 Draft at the WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden.

We continue our series with a profile of dynamic Davidson sharpshooter Stephen Curry, a consensus top lottery pick according to major scouting services and numerous publications.

Few college players have had a career like Davidson guard Stephen Curry.

A virtual unknown who was lightly recruited coming out of high school, all he has done is turn himself into one of the most prolific scorers in NCAA history.

The son of former NBA star Dell Curry, who played in the NBA for 16 season and was the NBA Sixth Man of the Year in 1994 while with the Charlotte Hornets, Stephen’s strengths are seemingly endless. He is a poised, unselfish player who doesn’t take any plays off, and is a true leader who wants the ball in his hands with the game on the line.

Curry is often compared to Pacers legend Reggie Miller not only for his sweet stroke and endless range, but for his ability to create his own shot and come off the screen with a rapid fire release. At 6-foot-3 and 185-pounds, he is also built like Miller, and can keep defenders off guard with a keen ability to change gears and switch on a dime.

Still a virtual unknown after that outstanding freshman campaign, Curry averaged 25.9 points as a sophomore. But again, many dismissed his impressive stats, assuming it was a result of playing in the mid-major Southern Conference.

All Curry did to dispel that notion was turn in a virtuoso performance to single-handedly lead the Wildcats to the Elite Eight. He first turned heads with a 40-point outburst in 10th seeded Davidson’s opening round upset of seventh-seeded Gonzaga. In the second round, Curry scored 30 points, including 25 in the second half, as he rallied his team from a 17-point deficit to upset the second-seeded Georgetown Hoyas who were coming off a Final Four appearance the year before.

Facing a stingy defense and one of the nation’s best in the Sweet 16, even the Wisconsin Badgers were no match for Curry, whose 33 points led his team to a date with the eventual National Champions, Kansas. Still, Curry put a scare into the Jayhawks, scoring 25 points as Kansas barely nipped the Wildcats 59-57.

Many expected Curry to go pro following his mind-blowing performance, but he still had something to prove, wanting to show scouts he was not just a one-dimensional player. This past season, running the point full time for the first time, the 21-year-old averaged 5.6 assists a game, up from the 2.9 dimes he dished per match the year before. Equally impressive, his points per game did not dip, but instead went up, as he averaged 28.6 points per game.

The biggest knock on Curry is that he is virtually a non-factor on the defensive end. Some scouts worry that his slender frame will get outmuscled and pushed off the ball in the much more physical NBA. Still, it can’t be denied that Curry is a true wizard on the offensive end.

Plus, there will always be more than enough room in the league for a pure shooter with a rapid fire release and seemingly endless range who has shown the ability to single-handedly lead a team to victory.