Stephen Curry is a two-time NBA MVP and three-time champion with the Golden State Warriors. However, his legacy goes beyond these lofty accomplishments. He is also widely credited for changing the game of basketball by inspiring players at all levels to utilize the 3-point shot regularly. A late bloomer in terms of physical stature, he developed a playing style that would suit his frame and used exceptional basketball IQ to outwit the opposition while turning his teammates into better players.
Interesting facts about Stephen Curry
Childhood
1. Stephen “Steph” Curry was born in Akron, Ohio on March 14, 1998. He is the oldest of three siblings with younger sister Sydel, a volleyball player, and younger brother Seth, who is also an NBA player.
2. His father is Wardell Stephen “Dell” Curry, a former professional basketball player. His mother is Sonya Adams Curry, a former professional volleyball player and educator. The two met at Virginia Tech and were married in 1988.
3. Dell Curry spent 15 seasons in the NBA. He was a first-round draft pick who played for the Utah Jazz, Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Toronto Raptors. Known for being a shooter, he passed on his skills to son Steph.
4. Stephen Curry grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina where the family has a 16-acre property. As a child, his dad would take him and his brother to the Hornets’ games. They were able to talk and shoot with the pros during warm-ups.
5. The first event Steph remembers attending was the NBA All-star Weekend when he was 4 years old. A widely circulated photo shows him on his father’s lap with Mitch Richmond and Don Nelson at the back.
6. Sonya and Dell Curry did not push their children into sports. In fact, all three were not allowed to play competitively until they reached middle school. Steph, Seth, and Sydel attended the Christian Montessori School of Lake Norman which is in Huntersville, North Carolina.
7. Steph was undersized for most of his young life. He was often overlooked by coaches since he was short and skinny compared to players of his age. He made up for this with high basketball IQ, excellent skills, and team leadership.
8. Steph Curry started playing golf when he was 10 years old. He has continued to play as an amateur throughout adulthood with the sport becoming one of his passions. He has played in multiple celebrity tournaments and made an impression with decent results.
9. Steph also played baseball around the same age. While his dad was a pitcher, he was a more of a hitter. He led his baseball team to a state championship. However, he stopped to focus on basketball when he became a teenager.
10. The Curry family briefly moved to Toronto when Dell was playing for the Raptors. Dell would retire in 2002 and go back to North Carolina while trying to remain close to the NBA. He worked as a broadcaster and director of basketball operations for Charlotte.
High School and College
11. In Toronto, Curry played on the boys’ basketball team of Queens Christian College. It was a small school of 200 students from K to 12. At 13 years old, he led a ragtag group to an undefeated season by scoring 40 to 50 points per game.
12. He finished his high school career in Charlotte Christian School where he powered his team to 3 conference titles and 3 state playoffs. However, he was left out of the Rivals Top 150 prospects ranking during his senior year.
13. He wanted to go to Virginia Tech like his parents but the university was doubtful about his physical readiness. They only offered him a walk-on spot. Steph Curry went to the smaller Davidson College which had been pursuing him since the 10th grade.
14. In his first year, Curry was the second-highest leading scorer in the US with only Kevin Durant getting more points. He broke the NCAA freshman record for most 3-pointers in a season and led his school to a Southern Conference regular season title.
15. Curry’s on-court brilliance resulted in his selection to the national team for the 2007 FIBA U19 World Championships. Team USA got the silver medal with Curry contributing an average of 9.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 steals, and 2.2 assists per game.
16. By sophomore season, Curry grew to 6’3″ with averages of 25.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game in the Southern Conference. Their regular season record of 26-6 and conference record of 20-0 were enough to earn an entry to the NCAA Tournament.
17. In the NCAA, Davidson was able to advance as far as the Elite 8. They beat No.7 seed Gonzaga, No.2 seed Georgetown, and No.3 seed Wisconsin. Curry set the record for most 3-pointers in a season with 159.
18. At the end of their NCAA dream run, people speculated that Curry could make the jump to the NBA right away. However, he opted to return to Davidson to hone his skills as a point guard.
19. In Curry’s junior season, he scored college career-highs of 44 points and 13 assists. However, he also experienced a scoreless game as he went 0 for 3 due to constant double-teaming. He also missed his only college game due to a rolled ankle.
20. Curry posted averages of 28.6 points, 5.6 assists, and 2.5 steals in what was to be his final season at Davidson College. He was named first team All-American and NCAA scoring leader.
Professional Basketball Career
21. In the 2009 NBA Draft, Curry was the first-round pick of the Golden State Warriors. He played in 80 games averaging 17.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.90 steals, and 5.9 assists. He was the runner-up for Rookie of the Year behind Tyreke Evans.
22. In his second year, Curry started in all 74 games and led the NBA in free throw percentage with 93.4%. He won the Skills Challenge during the All-Star Weekend and was given the NBA Sportsmanship Award at the end of the season.
23. The 2011-12 season was cut short by the lockout and Curry had to deal with ankle injuries. He only appeared in 26 games averaging 14.7 points and 5.3 assists. Despite the setbacks, the Warriors extended his contract by 4 years with a total package of $44 million.
24. The Warriors’ faith in Curry was rewarded when he came back strong the following season. He reset the NBA record for 3-pointers in a season with 272 shots and appeared in the playoffs for the first time.
25. In 2014, Steve Kerr took over as head coach of the Warriors and immediately transformed the team into a title contender. He gave Curry the license to shoot more which led to a breakthrough season with an NBA MVP award and a championship ring.
26. Curry bagged his second MVP award the next season after leading the league in scoring with 30.1 points per game and becoming the first player to shoot more than 400 3-pointers in a season. However, the Warrior lost to the Cavaliers in the finals.
27. Curry shook off his injury woes and led the Warriors to back-to-back championships from 2016-18. Both wins were against the Cleveland Cavaliers led by Lebron James. He signed a 5-year $201 million contract extension with his team.
28. In 2018, a groin injury sidelined Curry for 11 games and resulted in a losing streak for the Warriors. They were able to bounce back after his return but lost to the Toronto Raptors in the finals.
29. Curry had a short 2019-2020 season due to a broken hand which required surgery. The next season, he regained his form while resetting the record for most 3-pointers in a month with 96 shots and securing his second scoring title.
30. In 2021, Curry overtook Ray Allen as the NBA’s all-time leader in 3-point shots by making the 2,974th of his career versus the Knicks.
Business and Marketing Career
31. Curry wore Nike shoes growing up and was originally signed to the company. Indeed, Nike has most of the NBA players under contract and their basketball shoes have a lion’s share of the market.
32. However, the sports apparel giant lost him in 2013 due to apparent lack of interest during a pitch. Curry signed with Under Armour instead, a company that was happy to give more to the emerging superstar.
33. In many of his UA Curry One basketball shoes is an inscription of “4:13” which is a reference to the Philippians bible verse. The quote “I can do all things” is also stitched at the back.
34. In 2016, a Morgan Stanley analyst pegged Curry’s potential worth to Under Armour at $14 billion. This was after he won an NBA championship title and a regular season MVP award, propelling him to global superstardom.
35. In 2017, Curry signed a contract with Steiner Sports Memorabilia for exclusive autographs. The company will release a full product line that includes game-used items, limited edition pieces, epic photographs, and jerseys all signed by the player.
36. In 2018, the mobile device brand Palm was relaunched with Stephen Curry as their leading brand ambassador. Palm was known for their personal digital assistants and this comeback aims to find their place in the era of smartphones.
37. Curry has invested in a Christian sports apparel brand Active Faith. The company is based in Houston, Texas. It was launched in 2012 to use the platform of sports to spread the gospel.
38. Curry also formed his own production company, Unanimous Media. It has a multi-year deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment that revolves around faith and family-friendly content.
39. He was an executive producer of the film “Breakthrough”, a Christian drama directed by former Star Trek: Voyager actress Roxann Dawson. It is based on the nonfiction biography “The Impossible”.
40. He is also producing an animated revival of Good Times, a 1970s sitcom, which is to be shown on Netflix. His co-producers include Seth MacFarlane of Family Guy and the original executive producer Norman Lear.
Personal Life, Friends, Wife, and Family
41. Curry met Ayesha Alexander in their church in Charlotte as young teens. However, they only started dating years later when Ayesha began acting in Hollywood after high school and Steph was playing college basketball.
42. Steph and Ayesha were married in 2011. They have three children together: Riley Elizabeth, Ryan Carson, and Canon W. Jack. The family has been living in Atherton, California since 2019.
43. Riley Curry went viral at 2 years old when she accidentally interrupted her dad’s postgame press conference during the 2015 NBA playoffs. Steph has posted clips of him training his daughter to shoot.
44. Ayesha Curry’s passion for cooking led her to create a blog about it. This evolved into a YouTube channel, a Food Channel program, a cookbook, a cookware line, and multiple restaurants.
45. Stephen Curry is an outspoken Christian and so is his wife. They view their faith as the foundation of their relationship and everything that they do in life.
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