After a season for the ages where he led the Warriors to their first NBA Finals in 40 years, Stephen Curry was the 2015 MVP. Then, taking on the Cavaliers in the Finals, Golden State went 1-2 down. But averaging 26 points, 6.3 assists, and 5.2 rebounds per game, Curry helped the Warriors win 4 games in a row to win the championship. Did he deserve Finals MVP honors? Yes. He feels so, too. When asked, he said, “For sure.” But did he win it? Nope.

Andre Iguodala, who averaged 16.3 points, 4 assists, and 5.8 rebounds, took it home. Did he deserve it? Yes. Steph feels so. “We [wouldn’t] have won the Finals unless Andre played the way he did,” he shared. And what did Iguodala have to say? “I always say Steph did deserve [a Finals MVP] before the one he got (2022). So I always say if it was mine, cool. I know the impact I had on the game… I say all of that to say Steph should have had mine.”

Fast forward to the 2019 NBA Finals, a reporter asked Andre Iguodala what motivated him to keep playing at that stage in his career. Back then, the Dubs star was in his 15th season and 35 years old. His response? “[Steph is] the only reason I play basketball. I’m trying to do whatever it takes to protect his legacy.” That was all Iguodala needed to say to prove just how loyal he was to Curry. Now, it looks like that loyalty has stayed with Iguodala even after retirement.

Appearing on the Come And Talk 2 Me podcast, taking to former Warriors head coach Mark Jackson and his son, Iguodala (who Steph believes is “absolutely” a Hall of Famer) recounted how, during his time with the Dubs, he’d sometimes be Curry’s unofficial security guard. “There’s only so many people you’d really jump in front of and take a bullet for. You know, like, ‘We ain’t let nothing happen to him,'” Iguodala shared, adding, “I’ve been security for him many times. Like, ‘He ain’t signing any autographs today. Back up.'” And then, he addressed his former coach directly.

“You taught me that, too, Coach,” hinting at a mysterious “furniture story” but stopped short of spilling the details. That was because Iguodala’s protectiveness extended to every aspect of Curry’s life, including his marriage, treating his friend’s family with the same guarded respect. He said, “I’ll never tell the story about the furniture,” Iguodala said, leaving the podcast hosts and everyone else in suspense.

“We can’t put that on. I’ll never forget that. I tell that story all the time to my friends…” But when Mark Jackson Jr asked if Andre could elaborate, he immediately said, “I can’t. Even Coach [Jackson] knows I can’t ’cause, you know, he married to a beautiful woman, and so we can’t say that,” the 40-year-old remarked, bursting into laughter with the Jacksons. But going by what Iguodala said, Mark Jackson knew exactly which story he was referring to, most likely because it may have happened in front of all of Steph’s teammates.

Speaking of Steph’s “beautiful” wife, Ayesha, did you know that was literally The Chef‘s first thought when he met her? They met while in a church youth group in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Ayesha described Steph as “the cute boy at church that all of the girls were obsessed with.” She’d decided that he wasn’t for her, especially considering he was an athlete. After all, “NO ATHLETE” was one of the traits Ayesha was looking for in a significant other (if the list from her theatre group was anything to go by).

For Steph, his first impression was, “I knew she was beautiful… and I knew she was from Canada.” And Canadian candy and chocolate were treats the young basketballer loved. So, “Ayesha was the candy club for a long time before we started dating.” They’ve been married 13 years now.

Coming back to Andre Iguodala‘s loyalty to Stephen Curry, in the former’s first press conference as a Warrior when he joined the team in 2013, Iguodala compared Steph to Jesus—a testament to his deep respect for Curry. So, it felt only natural, then, for Iggy to become Curry’s defender. “Steph is one of those people who is like, yeah, we protected him at all cost,” Iguodala added. This sense of protection even transpired on the court when the forward played.

Despite keeping the so-called “furniture story” under wraps, Iguodala didn’t hesitate to explain why he always defended Curry.

Stephen Curry’s flawless life left Andre Iguodala in awe of the Warriors star

In the six seasons Iguodala played with Stephen Curry, the former tried his best to model himself after the sharpshooter. While no one is perfect, the perfection in Curry moved Iguodala to his core. Talking about it on the same podcast, Iggy said, “I’m trying to be like Steph, and I fail every single day. Like, it’s hard. Like and then you’re like, how is this dude doing this? And when someone is that, true to who they say they are, for them to have that killer in them that people don’t know he has, it’s even more special.”

The biggest life lessons come from learning from one’s flaws, but Curry really didn’t have any in Iguodala’s books. “You learn his flaws, but they aren’t real flaws. You know, Steph is the class clown sometimes. Yep. But he’s just a genuine human being, and just the way he carries himself, man,” Iguodala marveled.

Highlighting how Curry changed the game today, Iggy emphasized that not many players have been able to do that. Continuing his fond praise, the former NBA star made Curry an example of how people should strive to be like him, on and off the court.