THE ROAD TO SUCCESS
Near the small town of Grottoes, Virginia, a narrow dirt road goes from the house of Stephen Curry's grandfather to the woods nearby. A far cry from the bright lights and shiny courts of the National Basketball Association (NBA), it was along this road that Stephen's grandfather built a simple basket by attaching a piece of plastic to a telephone pole.
Like his father, basketball star Dell Curry, Stephen spent many childhood hours playing on this muddy basketball court. He probably didn't realise it at the time, but it was where he learnt to be creative and flexible as a player. You see, with every shot, the weak plastic backboard gave way. The bumps and rocks that lined the road under the basket caused the ball to bounce in all directions. Knowing where the ball would go wasn't easy. He had to adjust his own playing style as a result. Shooting with great accuracy was another thing he learnt. Only shots perfectly aimed at its centre went into the heavy, thick basket. In this way, practising day in and day out helped Stephen sharpen his skills.
Despite his father's successful career, Stephen was thought by many people, including his high school teammates and coaches, to be too short, too thin and too weak to follow in his father's footsteps. But Stephen carried on. Playing basketball was his dream. He would not give up. He finally ended up playing college ball at a small, littleknown school, Davidson College, not too far from where he lived. His creativity and perseverance made him Davidson's star player.
Selected for the NBA in 2009, Stephen joined the Golden State Warriors. He performed beyond everyone's expectations with his accurate shooting and continuous efforts. In 2015, Stephen won his first NBA championship, and he led the Warriors to their first championship since 1975.
After receiving the Most Valuable Player award for two years in a row, Stephen explained his philosophy, “I never really set out to change the game... What I wanted to do was just be myself... I know it inspires a lot of the next generation, a lot of people who love the game of basketball to value the skill of it, value the fact that you can work every single day to get better. You've got to be able to put in the time and the work. That's how I got here. That's how I continue to get better every single day. ” Inspiring others to believe in themselves, Stephen Curry is living proof that what other people think of you does not have to influence what you become. Through selfbelief, hard work, perseverance and some help from an old hoop, he has shown that anything is possible.
1. What is the theme of the text about?| A．The Most Valuable Player award has a long history. |
| B．Success comes from confidence, hard work and perseverance. |
| C．Stephen is the first NBA championship. |
| D．Stephen Curry followed in his father's footsteps. |
| A．When Stephen was little. |
| B．When Stephen went to college. |
| C．When Stephen's father was a child. |
| D．When Stephen's grandfather was little. |
| A．Stephen's poor skills. |
| B．The muddy road. |
| C．The weak plastic backboard. |
| D．The bumps and rocks under the basket. |
| A．He joined NBA in 2015. |
| B．He was elected the Most Valuable Player in 2009. |
| C．He won the Most Valuable Player for 3 times. |
| D．He won his first NBA championship in 2015. |
| A．Nothing is impossible for a willing heart. |
| B．More haste, less speed. |
| C．It's never too old to learn. |
| D．Rome was not built in one day. |
7. 细读课文并找出人物描写的句子
