“Trying to Separate the Two”: Steph Curry Follows His Dad’s Example to Maintain Family Stability With Ayesha, Says Mom Sonya

How does a four-time NBA Champion cope with on-court struggles? More importantly, how do they ensure their professional lives don’t interfere with their personal time with family? For Stephen Curry, the mantra is simple: cherish the time you spend with your family and keep the basketball to the court. How do we know this? Well, his mother Sonya spilled the beans on the GSW star’s mentality in a recent podcast.

NBA’s all-time three-point scorer has experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows in a matter of couple of games. After one of the worst shooting performances of his career, missing all 10 of his three-point shot attempts, Curry made a then record-breaking 13 three-pointers in a single game on November 17, 2016 against the Pelicans. This sort of elite mentality comes from concentrating on the task at hand and not mixing personal and professional life.

On June 24, Sonya Curry and Shaquille O’Neal’s mother, Lucille appeared on an episode of “Sway’s Universe.” They talked about how their superstar sons deal with their set of disappointments and what role they play in their healing process. For Sonya Curry, both her sons Steph and Seth have been plying their trade in NBA and what works best is her quiet presence for her sons. Yes, she has discovered that being present and merely enjoying the game as a fan is the best way to help her sons. But it also about how the brothers separate their work from their family time.

“Stephen and Seth both have told me that when they get home, they are just themselves,” Sonya shared. Over time, Steph Curry has learned how important it is to keep his work and personal life separate, especially since his father Dell Curry was a NBA player too. “He loves that because work is work. I think about that now, when we would tell him, ‘That’s your daddy’s work.’ Now, you can tell he is thinking about it, but he is actively trying to separate the two, and Seth does the same thing,” Sonya said on Sway’s Universe.

But what works even better for Steph Curry is spending time with his children. While Sonya admits, “He might watch more basketball; it’s, ‘let’s not talk about it,'” as far as his on-court proceedings go. Balancing work and life is something the Warriors star has been doing ever since he first became a parent.

After Stephen Curry had his first child, daughter Riley, with Ayesha, he once mentioned how challenging it was to maintain that balance. “You’re balancing. Obviously I’m pretty young, and you’ve got a wife and a daughter. That’s obviously the hard part of what we do,” he said in 2015.

Outlining the challenge back then with the responsibility of one kid, Curry was clear in his head. “One, just our schedule in general, and the off-court opportunities that we have and trying to make sure you keep your priorities straight. I keep everything in perspective, which is the helpful part.” he added.

It seems he has carried those learnings now that he is a father to four kids. With his wife Ayesha also juggling an acting career and TV roles, both parents have things that pull them in other directions. But they try to find time for each other and their children and keeping work away from home.

Despite his efforts, Sonya’s words that Curry is “trying” to find that balance, are given more meaning when you look at his words from a year ago.

Even Stephen Curry isn’t perfect

Even though Curry is trying his best to find that balance and be a good family man, it is never simple. Last year, in an interview with The Shift, this was his rhetoric: “Is there a real such thing as balance?”

Going in-depth into this fact, the ‘Baby Face Assassin’ admitted he hasn’t always been the model example of balancing work with personal life. At times, the frustrations boil over when he is at home too, and it becomes inescapable. But it’s more about adapting and allowing those moments that help Curry stay level-headed and maintain his peace.

“I know we’re all in this room because we’re highly motivated, highly self-driven, want to be great at everything we do. And when you don’t hit those marks it becomes frustrating at times and you kind of have to pull back and give yourself grace to know that’s okay. Go back to the drawing room and figure out what changes you need to make,” said Stephen Curry.

Steph and Ayesha Curry are working individuals and, yet seem to maintain a happy and loving camaraderie within their family. It isn’t because they have it all worked out, but that they have been learning gradually through the various events of life and finding the appropriate repairs for the same. Probably that’s why they’re one of the most beloved NBA families fans look up to.