Josh Jackson Called Steph Curry ‘Small And Unathletic’ In An Interview

Josh Jackson had a lot to say before he played a game of chess with a stranger. He talked about the NCAA’s one-and-done rule for student-athletes. He compared himself favorably to Kawhi Leonard. He called out modern NBA players for not establishing a two-way game.

Then he called Stephen Curry “small and unathletic” before he went out and got beat at chess by a random dude on the street. It was a busy day for Jackson, and Vice Sports captured it all and put it on a YouTube video for our enjoyment.

The fourth overall pick in this past June’s NBA Draft was asked which player he compares himself to the least, and he was quick to say Curry. The question comes up around the one minute mark.

“The player I compare least to? Probably Steph Curry,” Jackson says. “Just because he’s known as a shooter and I’m not and he’s small and unathletic.”

OK first of all, that’s a remarkably funny thing to say. Curry is listed at 6-foot-3, which isn’t gigantic for an NBA player. He’s not exactly known for his muscle tone. But I’m not sure if anyone has ever actually called him “unathletic.”

He did Tweet later to explain himself, because of course he wasn’t trying to drag one of the game’s best players.

“Man y’all make a story out of anything,” Jackson tweeted Friday. “My definition of athletic is a guy who flies through the lane and plays above the rim.”

Jackson did say he’s most like Kawhi, and he ends up getting a slick burn in on even more NBA players.

“I’m a really big fan of (Leonard) because he plays both ends of the floor,” Jackson said. “Watching the NBA today I can’t really say that about too many players.”

Dude is just ruthless out there. But not as ruthless as his opponent on the chess board in the video, a random guy who sits outside the Vice offices and plays chess. Jackson doesn’t fare too well against him. After all the junk he talked before the video, he kind of had it coming.