Stephen Curry is grateful for the women in his life. He celebrates them every chance he gets.
Whether they want that treatment or not.
This is the story of Nanea McGuigan. Only the most ardent NBA fans likely know who she is, but millions saw her on their televisions three weeks ago when the Golden State Warriors handed out championship rings to players. McGuigan unexpectedly got hers, too, that night after Curry and the Warriors decided to pull off a surprise and show her 鈥� and the world 鈥� how revered she is.
鈥淚t鈥檚 about understanding the value that women bring into this male-dominated league,鈥� Curry said in an interview with The Associated Press. 鈥淪he was one of the first people I met when I got drafted. She made me feel right at home, my family feel right at home. She was a great ambassador for what the transition was going to be like. Now 14 years later, we felt it was right to honor her with the ring with everybody watching.鈥�
Curry and his wife Ayesha have three young children, two of them girls. The girls aren鈥檛 currently interested in being like their dad. He鈥檚 hoping they want to be like McGuigan, whose official title is Director of Basketball Administration and Player Programs. Translated, it means she runs a whole lot of stuff for the Warriors, their players and their families.
鈥淚 know my daughters are watching and they鈥檙e starting to get curious now: 鈥榃hat鈥檚 her role? What does she do?鈥欌�� Curry said. 鈥淣either one of my girls wants to play basketball. But they can still have an opportunity in the business of sports. It鈥檚 amazing that鈥檚 being celebrated and encouraged more across the league.鈥�
Not all the national NBA news involving women has been positive lately.
. . all have stories that aren鈥檛 going anywhere anytime soon. Sarver hasn鈥檛 sold the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury yet. Udoka鈥檚 future 鈥� whether the Brooklyn Nets will hire him or not 鈥� will likely be decided soon. Primo鈥檚 problems may just be starting. Those stories involving women merit attention and should remain in the news, though they have been overshadowed by the ongoing saga.
But highlighting women's roles isn鈥檛 a new or one-time stance for Curry. He鈥檚 been an advocate for women within the game for a while, particularly this year as the 50th anniversary of Title IX was being marked.
A pair of one-of-a-kind, hand-painted shoes he wore during the NBA Finals against Boston back in June bore the words 鈥淩etire Inequality,鈥� and they were designed by a team that included UConn women鈥檚 guard Azzi Fudd 鈥� who represents Curry鈥檚 SC30 brand through a name, image and likeness deal. The message on the shoes was in reference to, among other things, the gender pay gap.
He didn鈥檛 only wear them for warm-ups or just long enough to get it on Instagram. He wore them to play. In the NBA Finals. With the world watching.
Fudd and UConn open their season on Thursday night. With Paige Bueckers out for the year with an ACL tear, UConn's hopes might rest on Fudd. She's a 3-point shooter. It's not a coincidence that she and Curry 鈥� the most prolific 3-point shooter of all-time 鈥� were drawn to one another.
鈥淚 look at not just my daughters, but all the women in my life that have had such a major influence on who I am, their different personalities, the talents, value, morals and values that they instilled in me,鈥� Curry said. 鈥淲e have an opportunity to leverage the game into a great opportunity for young girls and women to pursue positions where they can make a difference, like changing communities, changing industries, it all matters.
"I learned as much about how to be a human being, how to protect my own, hard work, discipline and all that from my mom and both of my grandmas.鈥�
His approach is also a tribute to his aunt, India Adams. She runs a Montessori school and played basketball at Belmont Abbey, a four-time all-conference player there. She knows the game. And after every Warriors game, Curry gets a text.
鈥淟ook forward to it every game,鈥� Curry said. 鈥淪he鈥檚 as invested in what I do now as ever.鈥�
The Warriors aren鈥檛 good right now. They鈥檙e struggling, winless on the road and looking nothing like the team that won the NBA title five months ago.
There鈥檚 time to get it right. Same goes for a lot of teams off to slow starts. It has not been a banner three weeks for many in this league, Milwaukee and Utah and Giannis Antetokounmpo and Luka Doncic among the few exceptions. Some teams will figure it out and turn things around.
And Curry wouldn't mind a few more Nanea McGuigan stories, too.
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Tim Reynolds is a national basketball writer for The Associated Press. Write to him at treynolds(at)ap.org
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Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press
