Sports

2 Years After Snub, Curry is All-Star Man of the Moment

Published

10 years ago

February 13, 2015

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, right, talks to Stephen Curry during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the New York Knicks on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

BRIAN MAHONEY, AP Basketball Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Stephen Curry will take on his teammate and team up with his father, then finally take the floor as the leading vote-getter for the All-Star game.

The Golden State Warriors’ guard might be the man of the weekend, and even he can’t believe how quickly it’s happened after he was an All-Star snub just two years ago.

“I remember where I was the night I didn’t hear my name called and thought that was a real possibility,” he said. “I was in Chicago sitting in the hotel room watching the announcements and obviously (David) Lee was a representative, so happy for him, but in two short years obviously where it is now, it’s unreal.”

Curry rebounded from not getting chosen in 2013, when he had the highest scoring average among players not picked, by being a first-time selection last year. He finished more than 42,000 votes ahead of LeBron James to be the top vote-getter this season, and he heads to the break as a leading candidate for the MVP award.

The Warriors have the NBA’s best record and will be well-represented on Sunday. Steve Kerr will coach the Western Conference, and he tabbed Curry’s backcourt mate, Klay Thompson, to start in place of the injured Kobe Bryant.

The night before, Curry and Thompson are part of an elite field for the All-Star Saturday 3-point contest. Curry will also team up with his father, Dell, a former NBA player, and the WNBA’s Sue Bird in the shooting stars competition.

He says there is more pressure to beat his teammate than there is to not lose with his dad.

“The Currys have never won a 3-point contest, so I think that’s probably the more pressure,” he said.

Even if he loses them all, it’s a big weekend for Curry. His career-high performance of 54 points in February 2013 came at Madison Square Garden, site of Sunday’s game, not long after the last All-Star game that went on without him.

Hard to imagine him missing another one any time soon.

“Just to be on a winning team, best record in the West and have the vision that we have for this team this year,” Curry said, “and then all the other stuff that comes from that when it comes to personal accolades and acknowledgements and all that stuff, kind of try to keep it in perspective because it is crazy.

“In two years, that’s a lot that’s happened.”

Here are other things to watch during All-Star weekend:

ONE CITY, TWO ARENAS: The Friday and Saturday events go to Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, while the Knicks’ Madison Square Garden hosts the All-Star game Sunday. The teams may be rivals on the court, but Commissioner Adam Silver insists it was easy to get them to share the festivities.

“I wish there was some smoke filled-room story in Moscow that I could tell you, but in fact both organizations were incredibly cooperative,” Silver said.

MICHELE’S MOMENT: Michele Roberts will hold her first All-Star press conference since being chosen last year as the NBA Players Association’s executive director, the first woman to head a North American team sport’s union. Her weekend won’t be all business — she’s bringing back the popular Player Association’s party that’s been on hiatus for a few years.

CELEBRITY COACHES: Knicks All-Star Carmelo Anthony and director Spike Lee will serve as coaches in Friday’s celebrity game. Anthony plans to be a laid-back one.

“All celebrities feel like they think they know how to play basketball. Some of them are pretty good, so just a matter of putting them out there and throwing the ball out there and telling them to go,” Anthony said. “They’re going to do their own thing anyway.”

What about Lee, the Knicks’ most passionate celebrity fan?

“Oh, Spike is going to be into it,” Anthony said. “Spike’ll be loud, Spike will be really coaching.”

MISSING MEN: All the stars aren’t healthy enough to be All-Stars. The West roster is missing the injured Bryant, Blake Griffin and Anthony Davis, all of whom had been voted by fans as starters.

HELPING HAND: Visiting New York and have any questions? Tweet them to the State Farm assist center — @SFNBA — that’s set up at the NBA House and use #Allstarassist, then wait for an answer.

___

Follow Brian Mahoney on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Briancmahoney

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WNBA’s Golden State Valkyries Kick Off Season with Community Programs in Oakland

“The Golden State Valkyries are more than a team—they’re a movement,” said Oakland Interim-Mayor Kevin Jenkins. “Their touchdown in Oakland marks a new era of opportunity, inspiration, and equity in sports. This partnership reflects our city’s deep commitment to uplifting women, investing in youth, and building a community where every dream has a place to grow. We’re proud to welcome the Valkyries to The Town.”

Published

5 days ago

May 18, 2025

Oakland Post

The Valkyries came to Oakland City Hall with a “Hoopbus.” Present were (from left to right): City Councilmembers Noel Gallo, Rebecca Kaplan, Zac Unger and Rowena Brown; Oakland Mayor-elect Barbara Lee, Valkyries President Jess Smith, a Valkyries team representative and Deputy Mayor LaNiece Jones. Photo courtesy Rebecca Kaplan’s office.

Team installs new nets at playgrounds, holds flag-raisings at City Halls in Oakland and S.F.

Special to The Post

The Golden State Valkyries brought the excitement of their inaugural season to every corner of the Bay Area with a full slate of community celebrations leading up to their historic home-opener against the Los Angeles Sparks at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Friday.

The week featured flag-raising ceremonies at city halls in Oakland and San Francisco, three “Violet Net” installation days at Oakland parks to encourage basketball play, fun “Hoopbus” takeovers at multiple schools presented by Kaiser Permanente, and player appearances.

In total, 90 violet nets were installed on 45 basketball courts across 34 public parks throughout Oakland this week. A list of the parks receiving violet nets can be found at Valkyries.com.

About the Golden State Valkyries

The Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA affiliate of the seven-time NBA Champion Golden State Warriors, were announced as the 13th WNBA franchise on Oct. 5, 2023. According to Norse mythology, Valkyries are a host of warrior women who are fearless and unwavering – flying through air and sea alike.

This brand is Golden State’s modern interpretation of Valkyries: strong, bold, and fierce. Tipping off during the 2025 WNBA season, the team is headquartered in Oakland and will play home games at Chase Center in San Francisco. For Golden State Valkyries’ assets, including team logos, visit valkyries.com.

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Activism

McClymonds High Names School Gym for Star Graduate, Basketball Legend Bill Russell

William “Bill” Felton Russell was born on Feb. 12, 1934, and died on July 31, 2022. He achieved fame as a U.S. professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. He was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won 11 NBA championships during his 13-year career.

Published

3 months ago

February 18, 2025

Oakland Post

Bill Russell and Brian McGhee in McClymonds High School Gym, 2011. Photo courtesy of Brian McGhee.

By Ken Epstein

West Oakland’s McClymonds High School, “the School of Champions,” this week named the school’s gymnasium in honor of one of its most famous graduates, basketball legend Bill Russell (class of ’52).

Russell is widely known as one of the greatest basketball players of all time. In 2011, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civil honor, from President Barack Obama for Russell’s contributions to basketball and the Civil Rights Movement.

The McClymonds’ naming ceremony was held on Wednesday, the same day as Russell’s birthday. Oakland leader Bill Patterson, a longtime friend of Russell’s, was scheduled to cut the ribbon at the reopening of the gym, which had been closed for several months for renovation. Russell’s daughter Karen was scheduled to attend the ribbon cutting.

Russell’s name and signature are now printed on the gymnasium floor.

Patterson was working at DeFremery Park when he met Russell. “I befriended him as a boy and during his years at University of San Francisco” said Patterson. “We stayed friends for the rest of his life.”

Said McClymonds Principal Darielle Davis, herself a McClymonds graduate, “We are excited to honor Bill Russell for his sports accolades and because he broke color barriers. He is part of our legacy, and legacy is really important at McClymonds.”

Brian McGhee, community schools manager at McClymonds and former football player at UC Berkeley, said that Russell meant a lot to him and others at the school. “He was a beacon of light and hope for West Oakland,” he said. “He did a lot for sports and for civil rights.”

Starting in 2018, Ben “Coach” Tapscott worked with Patterson and other McClymonds grads, community members, and former coaches to encourage the Oakland Board of Education to endorse the naming of the school gym, which finally happened recently.

“We worked hard to make this happen,” said Tapscott. “He’s an important part of McClymond’s history, along with a lot of other famous graduates,” he said.

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OPINION: Politics, Football and Identity in Trump’s America

If you haven’t noticed, all Americans are engaged in an even bigger game that means so much more than the Super Bowl. Our democracy is falling apart.

Published

3 months ago

February 17, 2025

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Emil Guillermo

Two Filipino American stories made headlines recently.

First, Nikko Remigio, the Filipino and African American kick returner for the Kansas City Chiefs, did not win Super Bowl LIX.

The other, Alameda’s Rob Bonta said no to running for governor. I don’t blame him. It’s not like a mass of people wanted him to run.

But I did.

Whenever there is a Filipino American in a place you don’t expect, I’m rooting for that person.

As California’s Attorney General, Bonta is probably the most active defender among Blue States pushing back against Trump’s Extreme-Right agenda.

I’d like to Bonta run for California’s top job, but he’s better off waiting in line. The Democrats need a spot for Kamala Harris, and Bonta not running obliges the hierarchy.

History can wait. Bonta’s just 52.

Harris has held off speculation of her next move, saying she just moved back to the state. But it seems governor is the path for her.

For now, Bonta needs to continue taking the fight to Trump in the courts.

Football and Identity Politics

My dad, whose birthday would have been Super Bowl weekend, came to the US in 1928 as a colonized Filipino, an “American National,” where he couldn’t be a citizen, vote, own property or even marry the person he wanted.

Not if they were White.

Still, he believed in America. He never gave up.

Sort of like Nikko Remigio.

My dad would have loved Nikko.

If you haven’t noticed, all Americans are engaged in an even bigger game that means so much more than the Super Bowl. Our democracy is falling apart.

You want to get passionate about Eagles and Chiefs?

Let’s be passionate about our Founding Fathers, too.

Nikko didn’t change the game. He touched it three times and provided more yards than all of KC’s running backs.

That’s all I needed to see.

He’s our Filipino guy.

Detractors may call it “identity politics.”

People don’t seem to understand the fight for visibility. To be recognized. To be seen. It’s all wrapped up in the big idea of Civil Rights.

I was nowhere near as good as Nikko when I played. But when you are blessed to play football, you play your hardest.

For me, that was when I was 12 and 13 playing Pop Warner football in San Francisco. I was MVP for my team as a running back.

But I was ashamed of my dad. He wasn’t like the other dads. And I remember going to the team banquet to retrieve my trophy alone.

I didn’t realize it probably meant more to him than I thought.

I wish I had shared my MVP moment with him like Nikko shared his joy with his dad, Mark, born in Seattle to two Filipino immigrants, and his mom, whose mixture of Black and White made Nikko the picture of diversity.

Filipino American and Black and White at the Super Bowl.

But don’t forget, there is one game bigger.

The Super Bowl for Democracy. We’re battling for it every day Trump pushes a cockamamie idea that shakes the foundation of our Democracy.

About the Author

Emil Guillermo is an award-winning journalist and commentator. Watch his micro-talk show “Emil Amok’s Takeout/What Does an Asian American Think?” on www.YouTube.com/emilamok1 Or join him on http://www.patreon.com/emilamok