CHARLOTTE — Charlotte Hornets Legend Dell Curry’s jersey is being retired this week, and while the newest generation of Hornets fans knows him as the television voice of the team, those in the know understand just how good Dell was in his decade with the team.
Curry was the team’s first pick in the 1988 expansion draft, and he departed as the team’s leading scorer, a title he held for 20 years. With 9,839 career points, much of his damage was done from beyond the arc -- he shot 40% from the three-point line, and chipped in an average of three rebounds and two assists per game.
Six years after he was first drafted, he was named the NBA’s 6th Man of the Year. Now, nearly 40 years after that draft, his No. 30 jersey will be hanging from the rafters in the Spectrum Center.
Even with the all-time stats and a legendary touch, Curry told Channel 9 Sports that he never saw this coming.
“When you picked up a basketball for the first time, where was this in the vision?” Channel 9’s DaShawn Brown asked.
“This was not in the vision. I was just outside trying to get away from my four sisters, shooting a basketball. My dad put a goal up on the side of a building … I went, wow I can make some shots," Curry said.
Nearly 30 years later, he still stands among the top three shot makers in the franchise.
“What’s the back story behind how that became your number?” Brown asked.
“Wharton High School … and then when I made a couple of high school All American teams, McDonald’s All American, they didn’t have 30, they had 15. So I wore 15 and that is what I was going to wear in college. When I got to college, someone already had it, a fifth-year senior had 15. They said we’ll get him to give you that. And I said no he’s a fifth-year guy. I’ll go back to my high school number 30. So I just stuck with it ever since," Curry said.
Curry’s sons wore it too, in college at Davidson and Duke. Both Steph and Seth are now in the NBA. Seth is in the top ten in the NBA’s three-point percentage of all time, and big brother Steph has been named the league’s most valuable player twice.
“Not only do you have two sons actively in the NBA, which is huge, but the fact that they also both embraced wearing the number 30. What has that meant for you?” Brown asked.
“I think growing up around the League, around the game, they understood how difficult it is to play in the league and like most young sons, they want to be like their dad,” Curry said. “So I’m super proud that they chose to do that on their own ... but as proud as they were to wear it because of their dad, I’m more proud that they’re wearing it.”
In a full-circle moment, it was Seth as the last Charlotte Hornet in the 30 jersey, for now, anyway. Curry left the possibility open for both of his sons to wear the number.
“Seth reminded me when this was announced that he was the last guy to wear number 30,” Curry said. “[It’s] in the rafters, so if Steph ever comes here he doesn’t have to ask. We’ll make sure he will wear that too. Absolutely!
“Have you allowed yourself to think about the legacy that you are leaving with this organization?” Brown asked.
“Not yet. I’m not done. I’m so excited to still be involved with everything that’s happening in this organization and my jersey going in the rafters not only represents me, but it represents all my teammates, all my fans, the City of Charlotte,” Curry said.
These days, Dell is very much a pivotal player, narrating the Hornets’ stories alongside his broadcast partner and friend, Eric Collins, whom Curry says called for this moment from day one.
“He has been around the game a long time so we’ve talked about it and I’m like let it go; whatever, man, we’re having a good time,” Curry said. “My life is good. My jersey retirement is not going to change my life ... but yes, it is. Now that it’s happening; yes, it is.”
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