OAKLAND — Taliq Davis was doing fine at first. The 10-year-old boy and his family, visiting from Killeen, Texas, sat just inside the Warriors practice facility. Across the gym, Stephen Curry worked out.

Things were good for nearly an hour while Taliq was occupied. Shooting video with a cellphone. Meeting members of the Warriors staff. Sharing intimate dialogue with his mother.

But then Taliq began focusing on Curry’s workout. No cameras. No talking. He just zoned out, hypnotized by 3-pointer after 3-pointer from the NBA MVP. And he was left with the enormity of what was happening.

Taliq has been through so much this year, having been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Debilitating pain. Multiple surgeries. Discombobulating medicines. The weight of life and death pressed against his preadolescent psyche. Good moments in life mean so much more.

And now Curry, Taliq’s idol, was a bounce pass away.

Tears rolled down his puffy cheeks as the reality of his wish coming true swelled within him. Before long, he buried his face into his mom’s arm. He still hadn’t met Curry, and it was already too much.

“Baby, what’s wrong?” Tanisha Davis asked.

The concern left her face when she heard his sniffled answer. She smiled and pulled him closer.

“He’s just so happy,” she explained. “It’s overwhelming.”

Warriors guard Klay Thompson came over to make Taliq feel better. But that only made Taliq cry more.

“Go ahead and let it out,” Thompson told the kid. “You know how many times I cried after I struck out in baseball?”

According to a representative from the Make-a-Wish Foundation, most children either smile uncontrollably or freeze up when they meet a celebrity. It’s rare for a child to cry before they even meet their wish.

In February, Taliq began having headaches. One lasted two days, long enough for his mom to be worried. They went to the doctor. The headaches were the result of a cancerous tumor. Because the tumor is at the stem of Taliq’s brain, surgery is not an option.

The next day, they met with an oncologist. The doctor wanted Taliq to leave the room for the hard part. Mom declined the offer. Taliq found out about his condition from the oncologist, with his mom at his side. He got to look at the charts, ask questions. The fourth-grader was stoic.

He was diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma. It’s a rare form of cancer that affects the lower back of the brain. It causes the body’s nervous system to lose function.

The doctor was about to offer his prognosis on Taliq’s life expectancy. Mom stopped him.

“I told him I respect his professional opinion,” she said, “but that he wasn’t God. I didn’t want him speaking on my son’s existence, giving us a timetable. We’re going to leave that in God’s hands.”

The doctor turned his attention to the patient. He made sure Taliq understood.

“Are you scared?” the doctor asked.

“No,” Taliq replied.

“It’s OK to be scared,” the doctor said.

“But I’m not scared,” Taliq said.

Taliq had to stop going to school. His life was going to be consumed by managing this invader of his brain. The regimen of medications that have caused his weight to double. The painful, exhausting struggle with cancer. The emotional toll of fighting for life. Taliq was game.

His mother told him God would take care of him. He leaned on his mom’s faith while developing his own. She believed without a doubt. So did he.

But that didn’t make the road easy. All the family was on the journey with him. And although he didn’t know it then, Stephen Curry, 2,000 miles away, was about to join them.

Taliq’s brother, Ja’Kobi, 13, was a big fan of Curry. He writes the same scripture on his shoe that Curry does. Taliq got hooked when he and Ja’Kobi watched games together.

“Man, that’s all they do,” said Markell Davis, Taliq’s dad. “They spend hours and hours on YouTube watching highlights.”

Taliq became a huge Warriors fan. His room was decked out with Warriors stuff and Curry stuff.

Whenever Taliq gets sad and starts crying, whether from the physical pain or the emotional toll, watching Curry highlights is one way to cheer him up.

In March, when the family was raising money to cover medical expenses in Killeen, a local television station informed the Warriors about Taliq. The Warriors sent him a package that included an autograph from Curry.

Taliq went to Houston for treatment. It was a rough time. But fortunately for Taliq, he had the playoffs to watch. And when the Warriors faced off against the Rockets in the Western Conference finals, being in Houston didn’t deter him one bit.

“He was going crazy for the Warriors,” said Taliq’s sister. Kiora, 15. “He was so loud, especially that game when Curry scored 40. He was talking trash to the nurses. Everybody in the hospital was a Rockets fan, except him.”

On July 15, when his family threw him a birthday party, Curry made the day by tweeting out a video wishing Taliq a happy birthday.

“He watched that video over and over and over,” said Tanisha. “All night. His face just lit up every time.”

Taliq is always with his sister. She’s his go-to cheerleader, making sure his spirits are up. She sees his roughest days. She witnesses the toll it takes on her mom, a nurse who is on leave to take care of Taliq.

Tanisha Davis is dedicated to modeling strength for her family. She doesn’t want Taliq to see her moments of being overwhelmed and feeling hopeless. It’s part of the reason Taliq is back attending school — his mother’s toughness helps him to power through.

“She is the strongest woman I know,” Kiora said. “I just told her that we’ve gotten through everything else. So we will get through this.”

That’s why this trip to the Bay Area meant the world to the family. Meeting Curry was a wish come true for Taliq; he had Beyoncé second on his wish list. But it was also the miracle his mother had been praying for, and the moment of peace and togetherness his sister was banking on.

Usually, a wish that includes meeting a celebrity takes a couple of years — if the celebrity says yes. That’s how long Taliq was told it would take. But a rush was requested because of the gravity of his condition. It included this letter:

“My name is Taliq and I am 10. I chose Stephen Curry as my make a wish because he is a great basketball player. I have been raised in church and I like that he talks about God. My older brother told me he writes scriptures under his shoes before he plays and I really like that. When I found out I had a brain tumor I was really sad and thought I was being punished. My mommy explained to me that God knows how strong I am and I wanted to meet Stephen Curry because I think he is strong like me and I love that he loves God like I do. I also think his daughter is very funny. I would be the happiest kid in the world if I had the chance to meet the best basketball player.”

So, the Warriors Foundation decided to host him last Friday at the Splash Brothers Camp, an annual father-son camp featuring Curry, Klay Thompson and their fathers. And the camp was about to start, because Curry’s workout was finished. And now he was walking toward Taliq.

The tears returned. Taliq immediately covered his face with his hands. His family members got out of the way, clearing the path for Curry to sit next to one of his biggest fans.

Taliq cried aloud, his body shaking as Curry took a seat. But then the star point guard put an arm around Taliq and whispered some words in his ear. And Taliq calmed down. He stopped crying, had a conversation and accepted some gifts.

Fitting. Because for months now, Curry’s been the answer for Taliq’s tears.

Read Marcus Thompson II’s blog at blogs.mercurynews.com/thompson. Contact him at mthomps2@bayareanewsgroup.com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ThompsonScribe.