Pubdate: Sun, 06 Feb 2005
Source: Oklahoman, The (OK)
Copyright: 2005 The Oklahoma Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.oklahoman.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/318
Author: Mike Baldwin, The Oklahoman
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)

OSU'S CURRY IS GRATEFUL FOR SECOND CHANCE

Connie Curry heard a crash and thought it was a burglar.

Running to the other room, she opened the door and saw the remnants of one 
of the greatest high school basketball careers in North Carolina scattered 
on the floor. Plaques in piles, torn off the walls of her Pleasant Grove home.

In the middle of it all sat her son weeping.

"We cried so much," Leon Curry said, "our little house could have floated 
away."

And with it, JamesOn Curry's ambitions. Two days before, Curry had been 
arrested for selling marijuana to an undercover officer, setting off a 
chain reaction that changed his life.

Gone were plans his school had for retiring his jersey. Gone was his prom. 
Eventually gone was a scholarship offer from his beloved North Carolina and 
in return an uncertain path to the future.

Within days, the all-time leading scorer in North Carolina history walked 
into a tattoo shop and left branded with a Biblical verse.

Now, almost a year to the day of his arrest, Curry has found solace as a 
starter at Oklahoma State, sparking a team struggling against zones, in 
search of toughness and a second straight trip to the Final Four -- another 
second chance on a team of second chances.

He has found support from a determined family, who embraced his new-found 
happiness; a loyal community, who displayed its unity on the anniversary of 
his arrest last Friday; and the faith he wears forever on his left biceps.

A thankful prayer to God for deliverance from troubled times.

The pace of JamesOn Curry's transition from recruit, to reserve, to a vital 
part of the OSU family continues to quicken. The Cowboys have won both 
games he's started. On Monday night, he'll start in the Bedlam game against 
Oklahoma in front of a packed Gallagher-Iba Arena.

"I don't think it could have worked out any better," said John Moon, 
Curry's high school coach. "He was fortunate to go to a place where a 
legendary coach was secure enough he could take a chance on him. JamesOn 
knows he's fortunate.

"What happened was an abnormality in his behavior. Oklahoma State has all 
the blocks to rebuild his life."

"What happened" is at the heart of Curry's story. It determines the where 
and why of his life now, as well as the what-could-have-been.

Curry was among 60 students at six high schools who were arrested Feb. 4, 
2004, as part of a six-month sting. Curry sold $45 and $50 of marijuana in 
separate incidents three weeks apart to an undercover officer posing as a 
student. One of Curry's transactions was captured by a camera hidden in 
officer J.R. Hughes' book bag.

After Curry pleaded guilty to six felony counts in April, playing for North 
Carolina 30 miles down the road was no longer in his future. Coach Roy 
Williams rescinded his scholarship.

"Growing up, wanting to play for Carolina, you have it right there in your 
hand and it slips away," said his father, Leon. "Nobody feels sorry for 
you. Everybody was like, 'He should have known better.' On TV, they made 
him sound like a drug dealer. It was nothing like that. It was a very small 
amount. What he did was wrong, but he wasn't a dealer.

"When it first happened, it ripped my heart out. It was so 
uncharacteristic. I was like, 'No, not him. You had to have made some kind 
of mistake.' For two weeks, he couldn't function. It was that bad. But like 
people say, God works in mysterious ways.

"He really likes it in Oklahoma."

Curry found his way to Stillwater after a phone call from his uncle to 
Eddie Sutton, prompted by the comeback story of Tony Allen; a visit to 
North Carolina by OSU assistant coaches; and a commitment by the Cowboys. 
Not that there was much risk with the on-the-court Curry.

When he arrived on campus last summer, Curry was expected to be one of the 
best pure shooters Eddie Sutton had ever coached. Coaches also discovered 
the 6-foot-3 freshman guard is an adept passer and better-than-average 
defender. Curry is a threat to score in the paint, drain a 3-pointer or 
dish to a teammate for a wide-open shot.

Curry played a pivotal role off the bench the first two months, but it was 
a dramatic change for him. Curry averaged 40.3 points per game during his 
last season in high school, but during a 13-game stretch in December and 
January for OSU, Curry averaged 4.8 points.

"He's never been a player who had to come off the bench his whole life," 
point guard John Lucas said. "He's always been the go-to guy. It was an 
adjustment for him, and he adjusted well. I told him if he kept playing 
hard, good things would happen."

Good things are happening. Curry got his first college start last week 
against Colorado. In his first two starts, Curry averaged 15.0 points and 
5.0 assists. That's no surprise to Matt Doherty, the one-time North 
Carolina coach who recruited Curry and is now a Big 12 television analyst.

"If he hadn't made a big mistake, he probably would have been a McDonald's 
All-American," Doherty said. "That's part of it. Those were the 
consequences. In the long run, it might benefit him. It forced him to grow 
up and mature. He knows he made a mistake. To see him get through this and 
have some success is really rewarding."

In October, Curry was still fresh to OSU's campus and adjusting to college 
life. He wrote a poem to his mother, which she still cherishes.

His feelings were clear.

"I've read it many, many times," Connie Curry said.

"He wrote: 'I'm leaving North Carolina on a trail of tears, but for me 
Oklahoma has been a trail of cheers. I'm so grateful.' "

Moon and Curry's parents believe it's a blessing he's playing 1,200 miles 
from home. If Curry played on Tobacco Road, where ACC basketball is a 
religion, rival schools and their fans would have reviled Curry.

Even in Big 12 country, it seems everyone knows of Curry's past.

And it makes him a target.

At Texas, one sign read: "JamesOn Trial." Longhorn students chanted: 
"Pot-head! Pot-head!" Last week at Colorado, a small group of students 
chanted: "I sell ree-fer." At Oklahoma, one sign read: "JamesOn Probation."

"Those things don't bother me one bit," Curry said. "I just smile at them. 
Kill them with kindness. Try to stay composed and play basketball. I'm 
thankful for the opportunity to play the game I love.

"There's no place I'd rather be. I love it here at Oklahoma State."

 >From the start, Curry's teammates supported him. When he visited 
Stillwater the first week of May on an official visit, Curry spent much of 
the weekend with players.

"Every one of them thought we should offer him a scholarship," Sutton said.

It's not the first time for second chances on an OSU roster stocked with 
transfers from other schools. Even Sutton got a second chance, hired by his 
alma mater after being thrown on the scrap heap by Kentucky.

"JamesOn has done everything we've asked of him on and off the court," 
Sutton said. "He doesn't miss a class. He's never late to meetings. 
Everything is 'Yes, sir,' and 'No, sir.' He's shown a lot of maturity. 
Everybody likes him. He really appreciates how people, including our fans, 
have embraced him. I'd be very surprised if he ever had a problem again."

Curry knows how to work.

His parents remember how he drove a tractor and worked on his grandfather's 
tobacco farm.

And then there is his sentence -- 200 hours of community service in 
addition to three years probation. In North Carolina, Curry worked at 
Goodwill and recreation centers. He picked up trash. He mowed grass in parks.

In Stillwater, he continued to work. In class. At practice. At St. John's 
University Parish and Catholic Student Union, where Curry washed windows, 
moved furniture, cleaned bathrooms, mopped floors and polished pews.

There, working in a house of worship, Curry came to understand his journey.

"All this happened for a reason," Curry said. "I think I'm a natural-born 
leader. I see it as a gift from God that I can share knowledge. It's hard 
to listen to somebody who says, 'Do this, do that,' but they've never gone 
through it themselves. I have a first-hand account where I can help young 
kids when I talk to them about what I've been through."

The tattoo, Psalms 71:20, is his constant reminder.

Though you have made me see troubles... many and bitter...

Curry's tribulation was a hot topic in newspapers and television in North 
Carolina. The criticism spread to Oklahoma when he committed to the 
Cowboys. Critics said he should never be allowed to play again. Opposing 
fans dog him to this day.

you will restore my life again...

After a visit to North Carolina and talking with dozens of people in his 
hometown, Oklahoma State coaches felt comfortable offering Curry a scholarship.

you will again bring me up.

Curry is playing on a team in the national spotlight. During the fall 
semester, Curry posted a 3.25 grade point average.

On Friday, the anniversary of his arrest, approximately 100 Eastern 
Alamance students wore white T-shirts with Curry's picture in an OSU 
uniform to support their former classmate.

"Of those 60 kids arrested, he was the one whose picture was in the paper 
all the time," his mother said. "He was the one they showed on TV. He went 
through a lot. It means a great deal to him to be playing basketball.

"I can't tell you how good it makes me feel to see him happy again."
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MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager