Stephen Curry receives 1-man commencement ceremony from Davidson during jersey retirement

For years, Davidson College was unable to retire the jersey of arguably its most famous student, Stephen Curry. While Curry starred for three seasons there, Davidson only retires jerseys of athletes who graduated from the school.

So when Curry finally completed the classwork he needed for his diploma, Davidson decided to kill two birds with one stone.

The school held a rare one-man commencement ceremony for the Golden State Warriors star on Wednesday, along with his Davidson Hall of Fame induction and jersey retirement. More than a few fans showed up:

Thirteen years after leaving Davidson for the NBA, Curry re-enrolled for the spring 2022 semester and worked with four current and former Davidson professors to complete his coursework. He was awarded a Bachelor of Arts with a major in sociology, but was unable to attend Davidson's normal commencement.

The individual commencement ceremony was held tongue partially in cheek, with Davidson president Doug Hicks particularly enjoying himself. After dropping Curry's famous "night night" celebration, Hicks made a bold proclamation for the four-time NBA champion, burgeoning businessman and father of three:

The commencement speaker wound up being Curry's own mother Sonya, who was clearly emotional from the start:

Unlike most college graduates, Curry didn't have to wait long for his diploma, as it was time to walk to the stage after the two speakers.

Curry's jersey retirement and Hall of Fame induction followed, with his father Dell and Davidson coach Bob McKillop also speaking.

The moment was a long time coming for a player who brought Davidson, a well-regarded liberal arts college in North Carolina, to the national sports stage with an Elite Eight run and first-team All-American junior season. Curry has since achieved even bigger things with the Warriors, but nearly any fan of his can tell you where it all started.