'I wondered if I deserved this:' Dell Curry reflects on Hornets career and team's rise ahead of No. 30 jersey retirement

When Eric Collins and Dell Curry sat down for what appeared to be the first installment of an interview series about Charlotte Hornets history, Curry wasn’t expecting much. The two had talked before about the possibility of his No. 30 being retired by the Hornets — and Curry had largely let the idea go.

So when Collins told him his jersey was going up into the rafters, Curry's first instinct wasn't tears. It was suspicion. “I thought it was a prank," Curry said during a phone interview.

“The look I must have given him … he said, ‘No, I’m serious. ’” He still didn’t believe it. And then it hit him.

The Hornets had been planning the announcement for months, a secret kept remarkably intact given that Curry is around the organization every single day — as a broadcaster, an ambassador, a fixture. The franchise's first-ever draft pick, Dell Curry will see his jersey retired tonight. (Photo by Ronald Cortes/Getty Images) Ronald Cortes via Getty Images Curry spent 10 seasons in Charlotte after being selected in the 1988 expansion draft, the franchise's very first pick.