It is often assumed that every athlete who ascends to superstardom in the NBA does so with the full support of family and friends, who provide the necessary belief for them to attain their highest ceiling. Given the extraordinary impact of Stephen Curry, who revolutionized the game of basketball on every level, one would likely assume that his story fits that mold. Yet, contrary to expectations, that wasn’t the case. His wife, Ayesha, recently shared how she had never foreseen the level of success the two-time MVP has eventually achieved.
Even more interestingly, she admitted how, due to her limited interest in sports, she was completely unaware of the early signs of excellence Steph showed in high school.
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“Apparently, he was, but I genuinely didn’t pay attention to that,” Ayesha Curry said during her appearance on the ‘Call Her Daddy’ podcast. “I grew up in such an art-driven family that sports outside of Doug Flutie, playing for the Buffalo Bills, it just wasn’t a thing in my house.”
Ayesha on the fame Steph achieved
Upon entering the NBA in 2009, Curry immediately showed optimistic signs by averaging 17.5 points per game as a rookie, then improving in his second campaign. However, injuries during the 2011-12 season cast doubts on his long-term prospects of being a franchise cornerstone. Put simply, many were certain that Steph’s nagging ankle issue would never allow him to become even an All-NBA talent.
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From the 2012-13 season onward, Steph’s career took flight. Not only did he begin leading the league in three-point shooting, but he also elevated his scoring average to almost 23 points per game. Ultimately, in 2015, he led the Golden State Warriors to a championship and won the MVP trophy along the way. With his meteoric rise, the kind of media attention Steph was getting was reminiscent of how they chased Michael Jordan everywhere in the 1990s.
For Ayesha, this period was both exhilarating and overwhelming. While the unexpected fandom brought plenty of financial success but the kind of scrutiny that followed was too much to digest. Thus, the sudden criticism and opinions on every matter that came in hand with the superstardom were something she and Steph never envisioned.
“It’s a double-edged sword because parts of it have afforded me doors to be opened. I obviously have to walk through them and put in the work to stay in the room,” Ayesha continued. “But that would be the elephant in the room. I’m grateful for that side of things, but on the flipside, I, in the beginning, I hated it so much. I did not sign up for that. I didn’t know that he was going to end up playing basketball, like he said he wanted to be a high school basketball coach… it was weird.”
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Steph’s rise in basketball was a shock to many
Ayesha’s admission makes complete sense. Nobody could have indeed predicted just how drastically Steph’s three-point shooting would reshape basketball. From the NBA to high school gyms, his style has been copied everywhere. Players across generations have been forced to adjust and defenses have been reinvented, all because of Curry’s unique skill set.
While most could only see the pros of Steph achieving this remarkable superstardom and the perks that come with it, the couple soon realized the cons associated with such extreme success.
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This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 22, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.