Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist - Stephen Curry (July 2023)

Episode Date: April 28, 2024

On this week's episode, Willie sat down with one of the greatest athletes of all time, Stephen Curry. He is out with a new documentary, "Underrated", that charts his rise from skinny college kid to basketball legend who has revolutionized the game. (Original broadcast date July 30, 2023)  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hey guys, Willie Geist here with another episode of the Sunday Sit Down podcast. My thanks as always for clicking and listening along. Going to revisit a favorite conversation from the summer of 2023 with a true sports icon, Steph Curry, the greatest shooter who ever lived, guard for the Golden State Warriors. Yes, he recently was eliminated with his teammates from the playoffs, home for the summer, which gives him now a lot of time to fine tune that golf game. and I got together last summer. He had just won a celebrity golf tournament in Tahoe, the American Century Classic, with an incredible dramatic putt. If you haven't seen it, you can go check it out on

YouTube. He is, well, not as good a golfer as he is a basketball player, but the distance between those two is getting smaller by the day. He is an incredible golfer. You can imagine, a man who's that committed to being great at something is going to do it in other ways as well. We had a great conversation around the release last summer of a documentary called Underrated about Steph Curry, a late bloomer, to put it mildly. A skinny little kid wasn't recruited by many schools out of high school, ended up at Davidson College, which is just up the road from Charlotte where he grew up. His dad was a player, Del Curry, a great shooter himself for the Charlotte Hornets. So Steph and his family grew up in Charlotte, went to Davidson, and then went on that, magical run that year in the NCAA tournament to the Elite 8 firmly put on the radar of basketball

evaluators and experts and was drafted into the NBA by the Warriors and the rest is history. We do talk a little bit now about what his future looks like. How much longer does he want to play with this season now in the books? Maybe the team breaking up is buddy Clay Thompson. Will he be back with the Warriors? Next year we don't know. So we get into a lot of Steph Curry's past. what he's doing now and the future, what it looks like after basketball.

Sit back, relax, enjoy our conversation from the summer of 2023 with the great Steph Curry on the Sunday Sit Down podcast. Good to see you, man. Thanks for doing this. Absolutely. Thank you. I can't wait to talk about underrated. But first, you are 48 hours removed from the eagle heard round the world to win the

celebrity tournament in Tahoe. what was it like to stand over that put and then drain it to win the tournament? It was insane. I'm so passionate by the game of golf. I played in that tournament. I think it was like 10, 11 years. And knew I had the game to kind of compete

and eventually win it, but you never know until you get in that type of situation where you get to fake like you're a professional golfer for a day and come down the 18th hole knowing you got to make a put to win a tournament. And it was an adrenaline rush like no other. It was the most fun I've ever had to play in golf. In that environment, I had a whole one the day before.

I'd come back and, you know, make an 18, 20-foot putt to win it. And I celebrated like I won a major championship, but that's just how much, you know, I wanted it and how much I love the game and how much I love that tournament. And, you know, all the stuff that poured into the game of golf kind of came back to me. So it was fun. Are the nerves standing over that puck? comparable to anything in basketball?

What did you feel in that moment? It's pretty comparable just in terms of, you know, the sensation of like wanting something so bad and trying to lock in on just the, you know, the routine of it all, because you can psych yourself out in those moments. Golf, that's the biggest thing with golf. It's so slow.

Yeah. And, you know, from shot to shot, it's less reactive than it is in basketball. So I don't have much time to think on the court. And, you know, muscle memory takes over. You have to have confidence and not be afraid of failure when you're taking game winning shots and all that. But on the putt, it's like I see. I've got to get the ball going in that hole and understanding the stakes that are attached to the putt and all that. But once it was tracking and I knew it was going in, I actually brought a little basketball celebration to it and turned around.

You did? I kind of blacked out at that point where I was like, I don't know what to do knowing I just wanted to turn this. Go find your wife. That's always a good place to go. start. I got that one right. You mentioned the hole in one day before, par three, seventh hole out there. You've had one before, I think, in your life. Yeah, 10 years ago. But not on TV in front of that audience, but the stakes where they are. And it showed with your celebration. It checked all the boxes, right? Like you said, hit a hole in one. You don't expect it to go in, but once it does, you got the crowd reaction from the people around the green,

people around the T-box. It's filmed, which, you know, everybody wants that, you know, the document. the accomplishment. And then just I took off a full 150 yards sprint because I didn't believe it went in. It's like you hear the crowd go in, but I had to go double check for myself because if nobody was on the course, I probably would have done the exact same thing, you know, sprinting down the fairway trying to get to the green and see if it was in the hole. I know the warriors were watching. Oh, yeah.

Watch the knee. Watch the knee. It was like a Tony Feenele kind of situation. Yes. Yes. Yeah. I didn't care. It was celebrating.

Worth it. To the fullest. Worth it. So there are people who watched you play all weekend and watched you play the last 10 years who go, he's, not only he's good at golf, he's so good that he could do this someday. Is that anywhere on the radar for you after your basketball career? I've talked to, I know enough about the PGA tour. I know enough about the professional level, just in general, to stay in my lane

in the sense of just being a really good amateur golfer. The only thing that's intriguing is, you know, however long I play in the NBA and how long many more years a half. The championship tour is something that would be cool to kind of prepare for. I know, like, again, they're the greatest in the world of what they do, and it would be a tall task to get your game at a level where you can compete out there. But I am a competitor, and I know what I've kind of put in, even just the discipline around basketball that I could maybe apply to golf to get there,

but I haven't really let my mind wander too far down the road yet. You've got some time. And that's 15 years away. It's going to be 50 to the Champions Tour. And every time I'm like, yeah, these guys could play on the tour, you watch Rory hit a drive on Sunday, 427 yards. And you're like, oh, they're doing something different. Just a little different.

A little bit different. That does bring us, too, to underrated golf, which is a really cool enterprise that you've undertaken to get more people playing the game. And what a showcase that was over the weekend for you. So what is the idea behind underrated golf? It starts with underrated as a brand. obviously talking about the documentary and what underrated means to me.

And as a part of my DNA, you know, coming up through the basketball rings, I was a three-star recruit that didn't get, you know, offers from the major schools, which I wanted. I didn't pass the eye test physically. You know, there were a lot of things, critics or, you know, naysayers that said I couldn't do XYZ at the highest level. So the underrated basketball tour and underrated golf kind of, you know, became an idea out of that of trying to create platforms and opportunity for kids that were in my shoes

or are in my shoes coming up. They're just looking for an opportunity to showcase what they're really about and their skill set. So we've had a basketball tour for the last five years. And our golf tour just is in our second season. It's about equity access and opportunity in the game of golf and trying to get more diversity and more representation within the game, more access at an earlier age for kids. from black and brown communities to, you know, enjoy the game of golf because it teaches you so much about yourself. It unlocks, you know, a skill set in terms of not just trying to potentially have, you know, more representation of professional tours.

But the world and the business of golf as well, there are so many opportunities there from a leadership perspective and, you know, amazing careers that could come out of it. So I'm super proud of where we are. We get to take kids around the country to amazing venues and give us. and first-class experiences, and it's been a great start so far. Good for you using your platform for that. It's a great game. It's a great game. That's part of the joy of it, overcoming that.

So you mentioned the film underrated, which is just awesome. And it's not, I was watching, and I'm a huge basketball fan. As I was telling you, a big fan of yours. And it dawned on me 30 minutes in, this is not really about basketball. It's your story, of course, but it's about overcoming odds, people not believing in you, finding who you are. And I was joking to me the minute ago, there's a shot in there of you, I don't know, are you 10 years old or something? Nine years old sitting at the end of the bench, the very end of the bench, biting your fingernails.

And it freezes on you. And I'm like, that kid's going to be Steph Curry. So what were those early years as a player who had huge dreams, son of an NBA star, all the things you wanted out of it, but you weren't getting back from the game. What was that like? It was interesting because, I mean, obviously, like you said at the time, you know, I just love to play basketball. And, you know, anytime there's a lot of gratitude and appreciation for any opportunity I got to play because, like I said, I just didn't fit the mold. Even, you know, growing up in Charlotte where my dad played for 10 years for the Charlotte Hornets, you would think that, you know, what came with that was like an easy path towards, you know, just being the best player on every team that you are. I had the exact opposite experience.

And so it was kind of a weird kind of contrast to what expectations could have been. but what, you know, naysayers and critics, even at that time, we're saying about, you know, I just wasn't ready for that level. And it developed an identity around, you know, work ethic and your inner confidence in yourself that when you're out there, you know, take advantage of every opportunity. You know, don't be afraid of failure. There's a perseverance and patience that comes with it as well that comes out through the documentary and how my story kind of unfolded.

And to your point, it's not just. a basketball story. It's not just a sports story. It's something that I encourage anybody to find what makes you different, what makes you unique, what you have to offer the world at whatever level and own it and pour everything you have into it. And thankfully, you know, I was able to find that with basketball early and, you know, found a support system that could help me, you know, achieve, you know, greatness throughout the process. So that underrated mindset is always a part of my DNA, no matter what's happened. You know, my NBA career and my life, I still carry that, you know, with me.

You watch the footage of you in high school. You're a good player. I mean, you see the Steph Curry jumper, the quick release, all that stuff that's in there. And yet, you weren't getting the attention. You probably thought you deserved to be getting. Even as you said, your last team's Curry, oh, you probably shoot his dad. It was a great shooter, all those things. And you wanted to play for teams near you.

You want to play for Carolina or Duke or Wake or into whoever it was, NC State. So how frustrating was that? And did you wear that sort of as a chip on your shoulder that they're not taking notice of me? For sure. But I credit my mom for kind of redirecting that energy in the sense of you can carry that chip on your shoulder to prove the world wrong and like, you know, go into every situation. Like I'm here to show everybody, you know, who I am. For me, it was I need to prove to myself that, you know, I was a player that I thought. I thought I was and that work that I put into it was going to prepare me for whatever the

opportunity came and to also just run my own race in the sense of what's for you will be for you and to not get into the comparison game of looking to your left and your right and judging yourself based on what somebody else is doing it's about your own journey and being hyper-focused on that and so like you said wanting to play in the ACC and even go to my parents alma mater Virginia Tech, like those opportunities didn't come calling, but when Davidson, you know, revealed itself, it was pretty clear that that was the perfect situation for me. And despite what anybody would say about that decision, I felt like it was right and had a full confidence and what that was. And that was, you know, a true unlock for me at that point in my career.

Is it true that Virginia Tech coaching staff or a coach actually even came home? Both your parents are star athletes there and said, we're here to pay a visit. We're not here. to give you an offer. We just want to let you know we're not interested. Is that true? It turned into a just wanted to do right by my dad and my mom because they were Hokies. But there was a walk-on opportunity if I wanted to go that route. There was no scholarship offer, though. So it was under a definitely different pretense of a meeting. I would love to talk to that. So you go to Davidson and you have not your first game out, but from there on you had some success.

And it built and it built and it built. And you credit Coach McCullough, who believed in you and gave you a chance, even though you struggled in that first game as a freshman. How much credit does he deserve for the man sitting here today? A lot, a lot, just in terms of from the time he started recruiting me, the message was that I was good enough. Like, I didn't have to change. He was going to try to unlock my full potential.

He was going to push me. It wasn't going to be easy. I truly believe that he had my best interest in knowing that I could add a lot of value to the Davidson program. I'm sure he immediately, I wouldn't say regretted it. He had some probably doubts creeping my first college game where I had 13 turnovers. And the footage of that game was worse than I actually remember. If I'm a coach and I'm watching that performance, I'm making a quick substitution and moving on. but Coach McKillard, he stuck with me

and he instill confidence in me through those failures. And it wasn't just me as the basketball players, me as the man as well. And he coached and mentor both. And so I felt like that decision to go there, probably for him in those three years that I had there were the most formative years of my basketball career. I remember the whispers started coming out of North Carolina.

There's this team and there's this kid. He's a freshman. He's skinny. He didn't look like. what you're used to a star basketball player being, and then you guys went to the tournament that year, lost in the first round. But then the next year, you go on this incredible run in 08,

and you win three games. Nobody expected you to win, and maybe should have won another one after that. I'm sure you feel like you should have. Absolutely. What did that run do for you and your life where the whole country said, oh, my God, this guy is as good as they're saying.

You start with, like you talked about my early years. Like I got to kind of understand who I was as a person and a player before all the spotlight happened. And that I'm forever grateful for because, you know, it wasn't just what I was able to accomplish. But that team in particular, there's a lot of, you know, good inspiration that comes out of everybody understanding what their role was, everybody playing their role to the best of their ability and being a star in that role. And just the power of team and the collective that, you know, when we had to share a goal, we all showed up, you know, with the right energy to get it done. And obviously, you know, my story coming out of that was pretty loud.

It was putting Davidson on the map and that tournament run that we had was something truly special in the sense of overcoming so many odds as a small Division 1 program beating, you know, Gonzaga, Georgetown, Wisconsin, losing to the eventual champions in Kansas. But in that doc, we kind of dive into everybody's role and perspective and how that impacted each one of them individually, from the coaching staff to some of my teammates to the Davidson community around. And it was truly a special time, and a lot of great reflection comes from looking back at what we were able to accomplish. There's a moment that really struck me where LeBron James is sitting in the crowd at one of your games during the tournament, right?

He's LeBron, and you're still the skinny kid from Davidson, who people are, if you compete at the NBA level, what's it going to be like? And now to fast forward to today, people argue over which is the greatest player in the NBA. As a young player in that big of a game to look over and see LeBron watching, felt like what? Surreal? 100%. Like, I'm just a sophomore trying to figure it out on the NCAA tournament. And, you know, I think LeBron was probably in his fourth or fifth year.

at the time and he was LeBron. So for him to come out of going on his way and come to a forward field in Detroit and watch his play, even some of the reactions he had to some of the plays and all that, it is kind of hilarious to if you were to stop time in that moment and told both of us, you know, what was in our future in terms of the back and forth battles and, you know, the careers that were kind of intertwined in that respect. We probably would laugh at it. But, you know, that's how it turned up.

It sure did. And before you get through. draft you decide to leave. Your mom says to you, and it's such a credit to her and to your whole family, she says, okay, you can go to the NBA, but you will get your degree from Davidson. And she held you to that. And you got it last summer. And the footage in the film, when you graduate last August, standing up on that stage at Davidson, and she's got tears in her eyes, and your dad's got tears in his eyes. I think I saw some tears in your eyes, too. What at that moment, totally unrelated to basketball?

What did that feel like? It was kind of a nice completion to the arc of what Davidson meant to me because everything that I put into that decision to go there was around owning that experience right in the sense of it was a decision for basketball as a decision to play for Coach McKeillop. It was, you know, Davidson's such an amazing educational experience, a liberal arts school, pretty tight-knit. And Coach McKeelop had an unblemished graduation record for four-year-old. players for him. And so I didn't want to be the one blemish on that record. And to your point,

my mom's a lifelong educator. She formed a Montessori school that I went to in early elementary ages. And so didn't know it would take that long to get across the podium and get my degree. You were busy. Yeah, it was a special time to know. One, it wasn't going to be like an honorary thing. I wanted to actually do the work and earn it. But it was a great moment. moment to bring everybody back together as well, like the celebration you talked about, some of the footage in there. You know, had old teammates, had all my coaches, I had 5,000 of the Davidson community in the arena celebrating the moment with me. And it was special because it speaks to how many people have been involved in my life along the way and my journey

and have helped me get to where I'm at and for me to be able to acknowledge them while also, you know, fulfilling a promise to the most important people in my life was truly special. I don't want to give away too much, but there are some great scenes of you studying, working on your thesis at home while your own kids. Well, my kids are doing homework. It's good. Doing homework together with your kids. I don't think one of them was just like eating chicken nuggets.

I don't think he was doing a lot of homework. He's the tornado in the house. There's some good scenes in there for sure. That's very clear. That's very clear in this film as well. So you're underrated even when you get picked. You're a lottery pick. You're the seventh pick in the draft.

But still, like on draft night and on the show. was the next day. They go, I don't know. He's a great shooter, played in the Southern Conference, still pretty skinny. Maybe he'll be like a nice spot-up shooter in the NBA. Still having to prove yourself at every level, it seems like. So what was that like in the NBA saying, okay, now I've got to prove it on him on the highest level? Just more, more challenging motivation to tap into that underrated DNA that I developed earlier in my life. And like you said, as the level kept rising, and there was always an opportunity to have to prove and that I was worthy or, you know, able to compete on that level.

It had followed that had been the narrative, you know, all the way through. So I didn't feel like anything was changing. And to your point like there, there's the draft report of what I can't do and it was pretty loud and pretty extensive. And, you know, there are a lot of bullet points on it of, you know, this XYZ, why he can't make it on the NBA level. And even going to Golden State, which was a, organization that hadn't had success in an extremely long time. So I was at the time not understanding

how big the opportunity would be or the challenge would be, but just excited that I had my foot in the door. And as long as I had that, then I had a lot of confidence in myself that I'd be able to figure it out because I had developed that work ethic from day one. That draft report sounded a lot like the Tom Brady report, by the way. I just didn't have the very awkward draft day picture with my shirt off. That combine shot is going to haunt him forever. In his boxers, I think, too. So when did you feel like you had arrived in the NBA, that you had to, that you weren't proving yourself anymore?

Was it the first title? Was it MVP awards? When did you start to feel like that way? It was probably my fourth year. We had a game in New York at the Garden. And I scored 54 points, but we lost that night. And it was the first time, really, that confidence is an unbelievable unlock in anything. especially on the basketball court.

People started to talk about you a little different once I had had that night. And I think it just gave me a boost. I already knew that I was capable, but I think the tone started to change a little bit. And then from there, there was a little failure on the back end of that. Next year we had lost in the playoffs against the Clippers and seven-game series. and we were still tapping on the door of trying to get to the mountain top of being a championship contender.

But that game specifically just kind of changed the narrative, okay, we got to take this kid seriously because he's got a game and he's fearless and I appreciate that little stamp of validation, but I knew that there was a little bit more work that needed to be done. It's funny what a big night at the garden can do, isn't it? Absolutely.

The whole world notices. Absolutely. Hey guys, thanks for listening to the Sunday Sit Down podcast. Stick around to hear more Steph Curry right after the break. Welcome back. Now more of my conversation with Steph Curry. I heard you say, and I was surprised to hear it, that you still feel a little underrated. How can that be? When people talk about you as maybe the greatest player who ever lived,

certainly right now, you and LeBron, how could you still be underrated? It's a tough one to explain because of what the resume looks like, but for me, it's like the healthy insecurity of the way that I've seen. You know, the game of basketball and life from day one has not changed at all. I still want to enjoy every opportunity I have. There's a lot of gratitude and appreciation for, you know, what I've been able to accomplish. But I still have that I have to prove to myself that I can still do it and I can still do it or I can still do it for as long as I can. You know, that's what drives me.

And maybe it's something that I can, you know, trick yourself into every year knowing like, all right, you have success. but it's what have you done lately type of mentality that you have to kind of keep living up to. And if I don't have that underrated DNA come out and that drive me in terms of how I prepare for the next season or how I prepare for a big game throughout the regular season or a big playoff run, I won't be myself. And so, yeah, that's the best way to explain it. And knowing that that underrated mindset is, again, a part of just who I am and it oozes out of me at every, at every opportunity. I imagine part of it too is people keep writing off,

not just you, but your team. I'm watching the film and remembering every time you would lose a playoff series. The dynasty's over. That's it. It's over. They're too old. Break up the band.

Let's move on. And then you'd win another championship. Why do you think people keep doing that, making the same mistake of counting you guys out? I don't know, man. I know once you're successful and you've got the target on your back at a certain point, And people want to see, you lose almost in the sense.

I feel like that's kind of the nature, unless you're in Dubnation or out in the Bay Area and you're a true Warriors fan. So it's just a part of the nature of winning. And once you show a little sign of vulnerability or like you lost your powers, I think that's what we've thrived on. And we're in that position right now trying to reestablish who we are at the top of the league. especially our core being still together. It's an amazing opportunity to tap into that, you know, for one more run to see if we can get back there. And I know we're really excited about it. I was going to ask you about that.

You have the core group, Draymond's back. You add Chris Paul. How are you feeling about the team going into this season? Even when you say it now, it's still like, yeah, we had Chris Paul on our team. It's phenomenal. Just knowing all the battles that we've had when he was in L.A. and then in Houston. but for us, like you said, we have so much know-how on how to win. I think our team is built to perform at the highest level when it counts in terms of,

you know, we have a high IQ team now. We have a lot of experience and maturity in our locker room, our core, and how we do things, you know, maintaining that was really important. And we've got some young guys that can hopefully step up into, you know, more prominent roles within our rotation to help us. It was, you know, beat any team in the league. So you got to stay patient through the process of figuring it out because, you know, there is change. And it's not going to look the same like it did, you know, years past.

But for us, you know, the confidence still remains. And I think it's pretty attainable that we can compete at the highest level and beat anybody. We just got to go out and do it. I don't think anybody smart would count you guys out at a Hall of Famer. Do you have moments, Steph now? Maybe when you're in private with Aisha or something where you go, I can't believe the skinny kid, biting his nails on the end of the bench got to where he got. All the time.

Do you? All the time. I think that's a part of just being able to stay in the moment and really enjoy what's right in front of you. We've tried to maintain that as much as possible because I just have so much fun playing this game. and, you know, don't really focus on the results as much. It's all process-based and what you pour into it and having faith eventually that will put us or put me in position to be successful and, again, be able to maintain it. But when you look back at the footage, like you said, me when I was playing 9 and under AAU basketball or me swimming in a triple X jersey in high school because I wanted to wear number 30. But it was too big of a jersey.

so I settled on 20 and it was still too big. The shorts were huge, too. I don't even know how you went through your legs with those shorts. Just thinking about all of that, that it would, the work that I put in would eventually lead to all this. Just the blessings of the people that I've gotten to experience success with on this journey. The lessons that I've learned through failures and all that, that it would have led to this.

It's still beyond my wildest imagination, but I think if you lose that sense of gratitude or that wonder of what's happened, that would kind of rob you of the joy as well because it's truly special. Joy is the right word for the way you play. I've talked to my son who's 14. When I grew up, I was a Knicks fan, watching them play The Heat and win 65 to 63 in a playoff game

and they were a fight. And we loved Michael, but it was all intensity all the time. You play with a smile on your face and you're running around like crazy and you're hiding behind screens and sneaking out and turning around when you shoot a three, does that just come naturally to you, that joy that you wear,

because it's fun to watch as a fan, and it's a good example for kids playing the game. It came natural early. The challenge is to maintain that, especially in the business of basketball, especially in the league, kind of can threaten that a little bit. But I vowed and been very intentional about

bringing joy to every environment that I go into, because I feel like, you know, that's what helps me kind of getting tap into the moment, not be afraid of, you know, whatever expectations might be now, or getting that fear or failure of, you know, if I'm having fun, that means I'm going to work. It means I'm going to enjoy coming to practice. That means I'm going to enjoy, you know, the sacrifices that it takes to be successful at this level. And that's my happy place out there, you know, just putting a lot of my creativity. creativity to flow on the court and what that's done for those around me too.

So I'm going to keep smiling. But one thing, you know, Kobe Bryant, when I was coming up to the ranks, he noticed that behind the smile was a killer instinct that the competitive nature was always in there. And that's, I like that balance, you know, because I'm going to enjoy myself, but I'm going to try to win at all costs too. I was watching an interview a couple of months ago with LeBron. Coach Kay was interviewing. young him. And he was talking about how the league has evolved since he came in. He's really,

like, detailed, smart analysis walked through. And they get to smile in his face. And he said, and then this skinny kid named Steph Curry came into the league and changed everything. Do you have an appreciation for the fact that 14-year-old boys take two dribbles inside half court and jack up threes because of you, that you have truly changed the way basketball is played? Yeah, it's hard to have, like, really reflect on it. But I understand even just at the highest level of professional basketball in the league, you know, how teams have shifted their strategies around, how guys have added that as a skill set of there

is a way that they see the game. It was never like an intention of like that's what I'm here to do, but it's just how I see the game and the irrational confidence that I have to shoot all those type of shots. The one thing for the young next generation is, like I want them to have the vision of being able to shoot the same shots. I want them to have the confidence that, you know, they can play the game that way.

You can't cheat it without the work that goes into it. So if I could count the amount of reps that I've gone through, I've tried to do this experiment. I know it's like more than 500,000 somewhere in that ballpark of how many shots I've actually taken and made to give myself the ability to go out onto an NBA floor or only given night and shoot those type of shots. So I want them to have that vision and inspiration. Just got to put the work in and have the patience that you can keep stacking blocks to get to that level. That's a good message for kids, too. It looks from the outside like you just have a gift. No, actually, I shot half a million jump shots to get the gift.

You know, you've got to work for it. So you've got a couple years left on your contract. You're 35 right now. LeBron's 38. He'll be pushing 40 here pretty soon. Brady played until he was 45. Do you see the end anytime soon? I mean, you're playing at a very high level, but do you start thinking that way at this point?

You do start thinking about it? the thoughts do creep in of, you know, what that timeline really looks like. I know it almost puts into perspective how important these next, you know, two, three years are in terms of, you know, doubling down on the level that I want to be at and continue to play at. And pushing it, you know, to the limit as long as I can. There's guys, like you said, Braun is doing it in his 20-something year, you know, what Tom did before he retired. It was truly amazing. So you can learn lessons from, you know, guys like that, that it is possible. Obviously, you have to be mindful of how you approach, you know, your off-season

and, you know, the work that you put in on your body to make sure you can stay at that level. And I'm doing all those things to give myself a chance to be successful. But I just love the fact that that timeline almost just gives me much more motivation for the now to take advantage of every opportunity that I had. because you know the ball is going to stop bouncing at some point. I just don't think it's any time soon. Good. You got that urgency.

We don't want you to stop selfishly. Negative. Okay, before I let you go, I won't make you name yourself, so let's take Steph Curry out of it. Okay. The greatest shooter in NBA history is... Not me. It is you, but I'm letting you take yourself out of it. I'd say Ray Allen.

not because he was just the second that guy that I have broke the record from but I think his form his dedication to his craft hit big shots in his career he checked a lot of boxes in terms of being able to shoot the ball at a high level which a lot of people don't remember

him in his early career he was a true athlete too and had an overall round game that was pretty special and his shot has evolved on the allowed him to have that longevity in his career. So I'd say Ray Allen. How about the toughest defender to play against? The guy who guards you the best in the league right now,

or maybe even over the course of your career? I would say there's a group of three that always, you know, the light ball went off when they were on the courts. Drew Holiday, Tony Allen, and we're on our test, actually. I didn't get to play too many games against him, but he had the strongest hands you've ever seen in your life. If you put the ball around him, he'd just smack it right out of your hand. Those three guys, Drew especially because we're in the same draft class,

and I just got to watch and play his whole career. He's gotten a lot of shine as of lay as obviously he's a champion and multiple-time All-Star, but he was definitely one of the greater defenders that had to play against. Run our test would talk a lot. Oh, 100%. Some weird stuff, too. Okay. Greatest player of all time.

It's the debate. Is it LeBron? Is it Bill Russell? Is it Michael Jordan? You know, you could go on and on and on. Do you have a favorite in that conversation? So the way that I ascribe to the mindset that there are multiple goats, and I hate that is not a cop-out answer, but it's so hard to compare errors.

and getting into that conversation of, oh, if you put Michael in this era or if you put LeBron in that era, it's kind of an unfair, it's a great barbershop debate and something that'll never stop until the end of time. But they're all goats because they've all changed the way basketballs played.

They've catapulted themselves to the top of their time period where you can't argue that anybody, there's a better resume in the sense of what they were all able to accomplish. But they are all perfect for their time. And I feel like that's something that, you know, it will continue to spark the debate of, you know, you put them in the gym one-on-one, who's going to win or whatever the case is. However, you want to answer that question. But there are multiple goats for, you know, multiple reasons.

And let's throw Kobe in there, too. Absolutely. Obviously. Yeah. Before we go upstairs and hit a couple of golf balls, if you're up for it. Tell me about that organization that you started with Aisha and why it's so special, not just to you, but to your old family, really. Yeah, it's an unbelievable foundation that we've been able to establish. We launched it in the summer of 2019, and we identified those three pillars as appropriate resources to help kids achieve their full potential.

It helps support them to unlock that potential through their early childhood development. and obviously nutritious, well-balanced meals and access to those meals, helping kids get to appropriate grade reading levels by third grade, which is a major indicator of high school completion. It was once kids fall behind, it's really hard for them to catch up, especially kids from black and brown communities and trying to implement better access to culturally appropriate books and relevant books for them through, you know, all different type of resources and then, you know,

active lifestyle. It's sports teaches you so much about yourself. It develops community. And so, you know, E-Learn play has been a huge part of us giving back to the Oakland community, which is our adoptive home in the Bay Area. We've been out there for 15 years and really important for us to continue to leverage, you know, that presence to continue to change lives. very blessed and fortunate of, you know, some of the things we've been able to do over these last

four years and we're just getting started. You do a lot, man. You got that, you got a production company, you got children's books, all the underrated. It's just fun to watch you go and I hope you play forever. Thanks for being a great player to watch, but also a great example for our kids to look up to. Great to talk to you, man. Thank you so much. Thank you very much. Stick around for more of my conversation with Steph Curry right after a quick break. Welcome back now to the rest of my conversation with Steph Curry. All right, Willie, give it a rip. Give it a rip.

No Tahoe hangover for you. There's Tahoe Confidence right now. Tahoe Confidence. That famous Tahoe Confident. I don't want to try the tip you gave me because it's going to mess me up. Oh, absolutely. I'll work on it. You got to work on that later.

Yeah. Whoa. Topper. All right, let's try that again. That's their warm-up swing, everybody. There it is. I gotta get that up. There it is.

That'll work, that'll run a little bit. That's playable all day. There it is. There we go. A little five-yard fade. Unintentional fade. The unintentional. That's a little six-iron.

That's as good as it gets for me. I'm walking away. That is crazy. That's clean. What's your target, Steph? See, that's the thing. I didn't even have one right there. So, all right we go.

I'm gonna hit it at the The far? The far white flag It's gonna be a little fade that's gonna land on it Far right one That's the fade, you called it Smoked it Hit a little six iron

Let's see it Might have a new golf outfit now The belt on the belt Oh, lefty Oh See that's the That's the That's the

That's the uh You're just on the heel a little bit Let's do one more This would be easy Just one thing step away from the ball just a little bit. Yeah. And then more, more, more, yeah.

It almost, it might feel like you're squatting. Yep. But that right there. Yeah. Golf tips with Steph Curry. That's it. Here we go. Nice.

Let it rip. Okay. Just don't cut that way. Just get the swing. And then we'll add it together. You got, you know how to do like the shot tracing thing now? You hit the ball and then the red line just goes that way. Yes.

You can draw it. You can draw it however you want to. Just get the marker out. Still can't get over how beautiful this. Isn't that amazing? You've never been up here, right? Never been up here before. That's the defense.

Where do you play mostly? You got a good course around home you go? San Francisco. Yeah. It's called the California Golf Club of South San Francisco, but it's called Calcloom. Kind of right in that pocket. They've got an Olympic, Harding Park,

and then San Francisco Golf Club. It's beautiful. The only problem is, you know how cold it gets in the summer. Yeah, right in the wind tunnel. Right, right, right. Right. And all that. We're wearing the ski hat.

Exactly. In the summer. In July. Yeah. Exactly. Clearly you're playing a lot, though, based on what I saw in Tahoe. I want to thank the Los Angeles Lakers for their contributions to me winning my golf tournaments in summer because I got a four-week head start on,

on golf training camps. A little early exit. Right to the golf course. Right to the golf course that helped me play. I played three rounds a week. So I got 10 to 12 extra rounds in because of the Lakers. And look where it led you. Holding up a trophy on Sunday.

Nice consolation prize right there. Watch this slinger. You ready? Oh, look at it. Sling. There it is. So like real like 1992 Tagger Woods with the extra baggy pants. It's a fire fit right now.

I'm actually really. Oh, that's pure. That's real nice. Oh, man. Love this game. What does golf do for you, Steph, that nothing else can. What do you love about it? It is the perfect combination of, like, I guess, three things.

One, like, the competition with yourself. I'm trying to find a little ways to get just a little bit better. It's the most humbling sport in the world, because one day you could have it, And for no reason at all, you wake up the next day and you forget how to swing and the ball does not cooperate. So that endless pursuit as a competitor is always fun. Then the camaraderie you get with just being outside with your friends and the four hours you get just to be in nature and all that. The amount of people and places that golf has taken me, I'm blessed in that respect to have a lot of amazing experiences I are on the course.

It doesn't really matter what you score someday. It's about the fun that you have. It's so cool to now see how many other athletes are getting into the game. Yeah. Because I was blessed. My dad got me into the game when I was 10, and I've been playing ever since. But a lot of people are finding it later in life and realizing how much fun it is. And there's a lot of guys, especially in the league, the young guys that are asking me, like,

what club should I buy? I should I start. Right. And I love it. So the game is growing. Yes. I'm trying to be able. You'll also find when your kids get older and go out with them, that's a nice few hours.

Just with your kid, quality time, outside, talking in the cart, all that stuff. All of that. You can't trade those experiences for me. I still play with my dad. Me and my brother, I would go out with him five to ten times a year, and we look forward to it so much. So I started taking my kids out to the range, and they're falling in love with it themselves. So trying to plant that seed early. Your dad played well in Tahoe.

He did. He finished 11. Yeah. So it's not bad for the old guy. Still out there competing. He's about to turn 60 next month, I mean next year. And so him still hitting the ball. It's a game for life, right?

Yeah. The original number 30, Curry. Original curry number 30. How about that? That's it. I used to, I'm not just saying this because you're here, but growing up 80s, 90s, I used to think he was the best shooter I'd ever seen. Just so pure.

clean and then you came along. You planned the seed and I just took it and ran with it. Yes, you did. Yes, you did. Steph, thank you so much. This has been so much fun. Thank you. A few more if you want to. That's hilarious.

My big thanks again to Steph Curry for a great conversation. And whenever that NBA career does wind up, I would keep an eye out for this guy playing professional golf. He is that good. You can check out Stefan Curry underrated right now on Apple TV. plus. And my thanks to all of you for listening again this week. If you want to hear more of my conversations with our guests every week, be sure to click follow so you never miss an episode. And don't forget to tune in to Sunday today every weekend on NBC. I'm Willie Geist. We'll see you

right back here next week on the Sunday Sit Down podcast.