Stephen “Steph” Curry is one of the greatest basketball players of all time — but his short stature and criticism over his slim figure made him an underdog as a kid.
While Curry, 35, has won four NBA Championships with the Golden State Warriors since 2015, his new Apple TV+ documentary, Stephen Curry: Underrated, reveals that he wasn’t always thought of as a winner.
In fact, in the first trailer for the film, which was released on Monday, June 26, it becomes clear that many people in Curry’s past didn’t believe he had a chance to make it all the way to the NBA.
“He’s about 5 [foot] 6 [inches],” one sports analyst says in the trailer, while another commentator notes Curry “looks like a kid” despite being a college athlete. As images of the point guard playing at Davidson College flash in the background — paired with moments from his high school days — another voice points out that Curry was “150 pounds soaking wet” when he first burst onto the basketball scene.
The nine-time NBA All Star, meanwhile, reveals in the trailer that it wasn’t until he went to college that he “first really understood” that he was “different.” Curry reflects on his road to success in the clip, saying, “I was the undersized scrawny kid that was just trying to figure out how to make it. I was overwhelmed by everything.”
In order to make his dreams come true, he had to keep his head down and go to work. “That feeling of being underrated will always be part of the drive that keeps me going,” he teases in the doc.
Stephen Curry: Underrated, which is directed by Peter Nicks, promises to document how Curry went from a small fry high school prospect to the seventh-round draft pick in the 2009 NBA Draft and one of the winningest players in the sports’ history.
“What we found, what we tried to sort of show in the film, [is] that despite all those initial things, like being the son of Dell Curry, of [mom] Sonya [Curry] who was a very accomplished athlete — who both went to Virginia Tech — he was still unable to get that first step,” Nicks told Deadline in January about the project. “Virginia Tech didn’t offer him a D1 scholarship. They offered him a walk on slot which meant, ‘We’re really not sure about you.’ That really is pretty remarkable given he was quite an accomplished high school basketball player.”
The director explained that Steph’s “pedigree was still not enough because he didn’t pass that ‘eye test’ and that’s one of the things that we documented in the film.”
Nicks added: “We’re also chipping away at what allows an individual who is not seen, who is underrated, not heard, what allows that individual to achieve their potential.”
Scroll down to learn more about the Stephen Curry: Underrated documentary:
What Is ‘Stephen Curry: Underrated’ About?Apple TV+
Apple TV+ describes the film as a “remarkable coming-of-age story of one of the most influential, dynamic and unexpected players in the history of basketball” focused on Steph. The documentary will blend “intimate cinéma vérité, archival footage and on camera interviews” to accurately depict “Curry’s rise from an undersized college player at a small-town Division I college to a four-time NBA champion.”
When Can Fans Watch ‘Stephen Curry: Underrated’ on Apple TV+?
Viewers can begin streaming Stephen Curry: Underrated on July 21, 2023, globally. It will also be available to watch in select theaters that same day.
When Did ‘Stephen Curry: Underrated’ 1st Premiere?
Do Stephen Curry’s Wife and Kids Appear in the Documentary?
The two-time NBA MVP’s wife, Ayesha Curry, and their three children — daughters Riley and Ryan and son Canon, born in 2012, 2015 and 2018, respectively — will be featured in the film, according to the June 2023 teaser.
What Did We Learn From the ‘Stephen Curry: Underrated’ Trailer?
Apple TV+
“It’s not about proving other people wrong,” Steph’s mom, Sonya, says in the June 2023 trailer. “It’s about proving himself right.” That statement is made even more clear as scenes from the athlete’s childhood as a self-described “scrawny” player flash in the background.
The clip also features Steph’s college days, past injuries, and rise to the top of the game as a member of the Warriors. Moments from the NBA star’s home life, his 2022 college graduation and multiple NBA Champion wins are also prominently highlighted.
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Will Other NBA Players Make Cameos in ‘Stephen Curry: Underrated’?
Through footage of his time in the NBA, viewers will also get a glimpse at several Warriors players who Steph played with as well as many of his opponents over the years. NBA greats including LeBron James, Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant are just some of the big names that will have a cameo per the June 2023 trailer.
