‘Stephen Curry: Underrated’ Tells Improbable Story Of An Undersized Kid Who Defied Doubters To Become An NBA Icon – Contenders Documentary

Matthew Carey
·3 min read
1
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

When Stephen Curry decided to turn pro after a stellar college basketball career at tiny Davidson College in North Carolina, NBA scouts looked him over. They weren’t impressed.

“Far below NBA standard in regard to explosiveness and athleticism,” they scoffed. “Do not rely on him to run your team.”

More from Deadline

Curry proved them all wrong, as shown thrillingly in the Apple Original Films documentary Stephen Curry: Underrated, directed by Peter Nicks and produced by an all-star roster including Nicks and Ryan Coogler.

“We discovered that scouting report, which basically did not see his potential,” Nicks explained during an appearance at Deadline’s Contenders Film: Documentary event. “And we also discovered sort of his inner mentality, which is very much a belief that he was, is, and always will be underrated despite everything that he’s achieved. So, we really wanted to try to unpack that for the audience… Why I was attracted to it was an origin story that I hadn’t seen before.”

RELATED: Deadline’s Contenders Documentary – Full Coverage

Curry has not only won four NBA championships with the Golden State Warriors, he’s also changed the game from one dominated, decades ago, by big men under the basket to dead-eye shooters beyond the arc. He’s the career leader in 3-pointers made (almost 3,500 to date).

He was always small compared to other players, going back to youth basketball. Steph used to have to launch outside shots from his waist just to reach the hoop. Dad Del Curry, a former pro himself, played a key role in the evolution of his son’s game.

“Del helped him change that shot… You could argue that Del Curry is the one who changed the NBA because he was the one that taught Steph to get that release up higher,” Nicks noted. “And because he was undersized, that was the only way he was going to get off the shot.”

Curry’s college coach, Bob McKillip, plays a supporting role in the documentary. When elite schools passed on Stephen out of high school, McKillip struck gold by signing him to Davidson.

“That was something that we had to make decisions about, who to include in the film,” Nicks commented. “And with all these celebrity documentaries now, there’s a lot of temptation to sort of stock these films with ex-presidents and other superstars and other celebrities sort of waxing poetic about the greatness of the subject. And there was some discussion of that. But what we realized is that we wanted everything to be organic and tied to his story.”

Nicks directed a previous trilogy of documentaries about Oakland, where he lives (and where the Warriors used to play before they decamped to San Francisco). Stephen Curry: Underrated, he says, fits within the larger body of his cinematic oeuvre.

“It wasn’t just about a celebrity athlete; it was also about a story about family. It was a story about community, it was a story about mentorship,” Nicks said. “And those are all sort of themes — particularly community and family — that are deeply woven through not just my work, but also my partner Ryan Coogler’s work.”

Check out the panel video above.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ settings: { plugins: { pmcAtlasMG: { iabPlcmt: 1, } } }, playerId: "1d932e57-b397-4448-b4b7-d30563744457", mediaId: "6c560ffc-a89d-43fe-82f3-0f4585ec6669", }).render("connatix_contextual_player_6c560ffc-a89d-43fe-82f3-0f4585ec6669_8"); });

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.