January 21, 2011; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry (center, facing) celebrates with shooting guard Monta Ellis (8) as Sacramento Kings small forward Donte Greene (far left) walks off the court during a timeout in the fourth quarter at ORACLE Arena. The Warriors defeated the Kings 119-112. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Steph Curry Made His Feelings Clear About Warriors Legend Monta Ellis

Originally posted on Fastbreak on SI | By Ben Stinar | Last updated Jul 27, 2025 10:59 PM ET

Monta Ellis was once among the most talented scorers in the NBA when he spent the first six and a half seasons of his career with the Golden State Warriors.

The Warriors drafted Steph Curry with the seventh pick in the 2009 NBA Draft (out of Davidson).

That next season, Ellis averaged 25.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.2 steals per contest while shooting 44.9% from the field.

In an interview (from 2022) with Knuckleheads, Curry was asked about Ellis.

Curry: "The way that he just put pressure on teams, on defenses, was just unreal. You'd look up and he'd have like the quietest 40 of all time... Nobody could stay in front of him. It was a cool thing to see like the speed of the NBA. Playing with him and watching him... I was just in awe of he could get anywhere he wanted to on the floor."

The Warriors ended up choosing Curry to be their guard of the future (and traded Ellis to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2012).

He finished his 12-year career with averages of 17.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.7 steals per contest while shooting 45.1% from the field and 31.4% from the three-point range in 833 games.

In addition to the Bucks and Warriors, Ellis also played for the Indiana Pacers and Dallas Mavericks.