If you were an avid NBA follower before the 2015-16 season, you might have doubted Steph Curry’s potential to reach the pinnacle of his career. At the time, he faced skepticism due to his perceived limitations—being undersized, plagued by ankle problems, and labeled as primarily a high-volume shooter with solid ball-handling skills.
It wouldn’t have been unreasonable to suggest that only a handful of individuals would have included Steph in their top-10 list of all-time NBA players a decade ago. However, it appears that at least one NBA legend foresaw his rise long before he transformed the league.
Metta Sandiford-Artest, formerly known as Ron Artest or Metta World Peace, was among those who firmly believed that Steph would ascend to become a top-tier player and eventually secure a league MVP title.
His confidence was so unwavering that he took to Twitter in 2013, a full two years before Steph earned his first MVP honor, to proclaim his conviction. Despite the incorrect name reference and the ridicule he faced from fans, Artest’s foresight proved to be accurate.
In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda’s Mark Medina, Artest reminisced about the moment when he made his bold prediction.
Although Medina brought up Artest’s other forecast regarding LeBron James breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record, Artest was particularly enthusiastic about revisiting his prediction about Steph Curry’s future:
““Yup, yup. I also said that Steph Curry would be the MVP before he got it, and people were doubting me,” said Artest. “You can go back on Twitter. I was calling Steph the MVP. Anybody that commented said, ‘No way!’ Nobody was talking about him being MVP [earlier in his career], but I was.
I thought he would be one of the best players ever. Remember when he was becoming good? No one thought he would be in the argument for top-10. Who has him now in their top-10? A lot of people. Nobody is keeping him off their top-10.”
