David Kahn is going with the Shaggy “It Wasn’t Me” defense now that his biggest career gaffe is back in the spotlight.
The ex-Minnesota Timberwolves president had a crabby response this week to NBA writer Yaron Weitzman, who wanted to interview him for a story on Steph Curry. Kahn infamously passed on Curry, who just broke the all-time record for three-pointers made, with back-to-back picks in the 2009 draft.
“I would be happy to talk to you just as soon as you talk to the Clippers (Blake Griffin), Memphis (Hasheem Thabeet), Sacramento (Tyreke Evans) and especially Washington, which traded the No. 5 pick to me straight up for Randy Foye and Mike Miller and could have drafted Curry fifth,” said Kahn in response.
While it is probably the only argument that Kahn has at this point, it is not a particularly convincing one. Griffin was a phenomenal pick for the Clippers and ended up becoming arguably their greatest player in franchise history. While Thabeet was undoubtedly a whiff and Evans fell off after a promising start to his career, the Wizards trading away the No. 5 pick was defensible too. Foye and Miller were two solid starters who were in their 20s back then.
Kahn spent back-to-back picks on Jonny Flynn and Ricky Rubio, who both played the same position as Curry, unlike any of the other names that Kahn mentioned. Curry then went to the Golden State Warriors with the very next pick at No. 7. Rubio ended up being a solid player for the Timberwolves and is still producing in the league today. But Flynn played just 134 career games in Minnesota before a hip injury later ended his career prematurely.
In 2009, there were admittedly some concerns with Curry over his size and the level of competition that he faced at Davidson. People also often forget about the persistent ankle injuries that plagued Curry during the early part of his NBA career and almost left him with the same fate as Flynn.
But Kahn probably shouldn’t get the benefit of the doubt here. His list of whiffs other than passing on Curry (e.g. using first-round picks on Derrick Williams, Wesley Johnson, and Lazar Hayward) is rather long. Kahn once even suggested that the league was fixed after making several straight trips to the lottery. At this point, he should just take the L on Curry and move on.
Photo: Mar 5, 2020; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the first quarter of the game against the Toronto Raptors at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports
