Stephen Curry knows the chaos, hilarity and pure love that comes with parenthood.
The Golden State Warriors star and his wife Ayesha have three children ― daughters Riley and Ryan and son Canon. From Riley’s viral press conference moments to his family’s adorable Instagram posts, Curry’s role as a dad frequently makes headlines alongside his athletic achievements.
In honor of his birthday, here are 12 quotes about fatherhood from Curry.
On Becoming A Parent
“You learn something from them every single day. They give you a reason to wake up in the morning, regardless of whether work is going well or not. Your biggest responsibility, obviously, is being a parent, and it’s just so much fun every single day when they change so fast and you’re trying to keep up. You get to share so many experiences with them and I’m enjoying every minute of it.”
On Fighting For Equality
“Riley and Ryan are growing up so fast. And with Ayesha and I suddenly seeing things through the eyes of these daughters of ours, who we brought into this world, and now are raising to live in this world ... you know, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that the idea of women’s equality has become a little more personal for me, lately, and a little more real. I want our girls to grow up knowing that there are no boundaries that can be placed on their futures, period. I want them to grow up in a world where their gender does not feel like a rulebook for what they should think, or be, or do. And I want them to grow up believing that they can dream big, and strive for careers where they’ll be treated fairly. And of course: paid equally. And I think it’s important that we all come together to figure out how we can make that possible, as soon as possible. Not just as ‘fathers of daughters,’ or for those sorts of reasons.”
On The Lesson He Wants His Kids To Learn
″[I want them to] be confident in themselves and understand that they are unique ... There’s something about them that God’s put in their life that’s going to make them stand out, so embrace whatever that is. As they go through life, that’s hopefully what sparks their success.”
On Watching Children Grow Up
“I think about the milestones from my childhood and what it will be like to watch our kids go through them. Taking Riley to her first day of school was a whirlwind. I can’t imagine what middle school is going to be like, and high school, and graduation. All those little checkpoints are going to be fun, and there will be ups and downs along the way. Watching our children go through those life experiences will be amazing.”
On Staying Connected
“FaceTime helps me a lot. I feel like I’m at home even though I’m not. My girls get to see me, and Riley is at the age where she asks where I am and when I’ll be back, counting down how many ‘sleeps’ until Daddy gets home.”
On Raising A Son
“Earlier this summer, a few weeks after the season ended, Ayesha and I were blessed with the birth of our third child, Canon ― our first son. And one of the things that has been most on my mind, since then, is the idea of what it means now to raise a boy in this world. I already know, just based on his gender alone, that Canon will probably have advantages in life that his sisters can only dream of. How do you make honest sense of that as a parent? What are the values, in this moment, to instill in a son? It’s a lot to think about. But in the end ... I think the answer is pretty simple. I think you tell him the same thing that we told those girls last week at our camp: Be yourself. Be good, and try to be great ― but always be yourself. I think you teach him to always stay listening to women, to always stay believing in women, and — when it comes to anyone’s expectations for women ― to always stay challenging the idea of what’s right. And I think you let him know that, for his generation, to be a true supporter of women’s equality ― it’s not enough anymore to be learning about it. You have to be doing it.”
On The Chaos Of Parenting
“There’s a lot of communication, a lot of dealing with chaos and being able to try to keep your head up the best you can ... You rely on family, for sure. Every year has been a learning lesson when it comes to doing the best we can. Quality time is important and that’s when you get the most joy. We really try to protect that at all costs.”
On Dealing With Social Media As Parents
“We’ll just show each other a photo and ask, ‘Should I post this?’ We know we’re in a different situation than most people, but we want to share stuff that’s meaningful and not have to be guarded. But there is a balance. We keep certain moments to ourselves, so it’s a memory just for us.”
On His Daughter’s Take On His Career
“Every day there is something funny. The funniest story, that’s the most consistent even to this day, with my oldest daughter Riley ... she’s six now. She had a thing where, when she saw me with regular clothes, she called me either daddy or Stephen. Or, sorry, she called me daddy. But then when I put the jersey on I was always Stephen Curry, number 30. There’s a clear distinction between me wearing a jersey and playing basketball versus me just in my street clothes or at the house. And she called me by different names. And that was the point where I realized like, they notice everything about you. You can’t sneak anything behind them. So for her to kind of differentiate ... I only say this as like a fan’s perspective, but almost just like that Warrior jersey, with number 30, that’s Stephen Curry, and he’s a different character, a different person than Daddy is ... ”
On Bonding With Other Parents
“A friend who’s a rapper was over at the house yesterday. He has two kids, and we were sitting there swapping stories about fatherhood ― diapers and bottles and day care. Lots of new material for our conversations.”
On How Fatherhood Changed His Perspective
“Being a father kind of gives you something more to play for. I think off the court, it just grounds you every day, because no matter if I have a good game, bad game, score 40, score 10, I think my daughter’s going to be happy to see me when I get home, and that kind of makes everything all right ... So I rarely ever have a bad day, regardless of what happens on the court. It just gives you something more than basketball to kind of play and live for, and it’s pretty special. Obviously, every father would say pretty much the same thing about what their daughter or son means to them and how they impact their life.”
On The Role Parents Play
“Whether they become a professional athlete or a professional in any other field of life, they will remember how their parents helped them navigate their childhood when it came to their passions.”
