Stephen Curry committed to winning another title while expanding his activist profile

At 34, Stephen Curry is “absolutely” committed to winning the title again this year. But the game isn’t his only focus. Curry has raised his profile as a businessman, a humanitarian, and – slowly but surely – an activist and more vocal political …

At 34, Stephen Curry is “absolutely” committed to winning the title again this year. But the game isn’t his only focus. Curry has raised his profile as a businessman, a humanitarian, and — slowly but surely — an activist and more vocal political leader. Look into his kaleidoscopic stare as he considers his status in the history books, and you begin to believe Curry when he declares that he can eventually “have as much influence” as Michael Jordan. And while the notoriously apolitical Jordan once said that “Republicans buy sneakers, too,” Curry has already put his brand on the line by clashing with Trump, endorsing Joe Biden, and marching for racial justice. Now, Curry is grappling with how he might expand the meaning of influence, and wondering what the fuck he is gonna say next.

Source: Matt Sullivan @ Rolling Stone

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Connor Letourneau @Con_Chron
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Stephen Curry said that the Warriors had internal talks this summer about acquiring Kevin Durant, who ultimately stayed with the Brooklyn Nets. sfchronicle.com/sports/warrior…12:51 PM
Adam Zagoria @AdamZagoria
Steph Curry signed off on a Golden State Warriors trade for Kevin Durant: ‘Hell, Yeah’ I Would Have Played With Kevin Durant Again
nj.com/nets/2022/09/s…11:06 AM
Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Stephen Curry says ‘Hell, yeah’ Warriors considered Durant trade nba.nbcsports.com/2022/09/12/ste…10:01 AM
Emiliano Carchia @Sportando
Stephen Curry says Warriors considered idea of a blockbuster trade to bring Kevin Durant back sportando.basketball/en/stephen-cur…8:56 AM
BasketNews @BasketNews_com
Forget Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and the others…
🇮🇹 Nicolo Melli is the best player in the world for Gianmarco Pozzecco 😅💪
#EuroBasket pic.twitter.com/08RSl32T6Y5:02 AM

Chris Biderman @TheWarriorsWire
Warriors Wire celebrates the brilliance of Stephen Curry with a photo gallery of his 50-point games. warriorswire.usatoday.com/gallery/stephe…4:01 AM
Kerith Burke @KerithBurke
Steph Curry told @sullduggery he loves KD. I know anything KD is kindling for the same ol’ discourse but it feels meaningful to see Steph say this. File it away in the “players are people” folder. pic.twitter.com/Kw78XonYsN9:19 PM

Christos Tsaltas @Tsaltas46
Bugrahan Curry or Stephen Tuncer?
20 points / 6-6 3P with 10 minutes remaining. The game of his life! #BizBirlikteyiz #EuroBasket #TURFRA7:16 AM
Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Stephen Curry agrees with Draymond Green: 2022 title was ‘definitely the most special’ nba.nbcsports.com/2022/09/09/ste…3:01 PM

More on this storyline

Stephen Curry rise has interlaced directly with historic racism, bigotry, and political chaos — with American protest and athlete activism not seen since the Sixties. And yet Curry has remained a reluctant culture warrior. He analyzes political issues like an opponent’s defense, studying “where the loopholes are, where the missteps are,” maneuvering to say less and, as Obama taught him, do more. “The current events of the Trump era, I don’t wake up and say, ‘I wanna go at that conversation,’ ” Curry, who has 75 million followers, tells me. Fans and the media, though, have come to expect the liberal NBA’s superstars to respond to CNN headlines. “Some of this stuff falls on your doorstep and people want a perspective or comment, and sometimes you cough that up unsolicited.” Which hasn’t always gone so well for him. “I think I probably need to do the work of looking back at the last 10 or 12 years.” -via Rolling Stone / September 12, 2022
Curry repeatedly agonized over a moment he wishes he could take back. In 2014, the Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling was exposed as a vile racist in recordings published by TMZ, in the middle of the upstart Warriors’ playoff series against them. Curry privately discussed a unified player response with the Clippers star Chris Paul, twice, because Curry and his teammates wanted to walk off the court after the jump ball. But the Warriors ultimately deferred to their opponents’ protest of choice — the Clippers wore warmup shirts with the logo inside out, then discarded them at center court — and to the league commissioner’s lifetime ban of Sterling. “One of my biggest regrets is not boycotting the game,” Curry told me. “That was a moment to leverage beyond anything we probably could have said.” -via Rolling Stone / September 12, 2022
In one of five interviews, Curry revealed that he and the Warriors legitimately discussed whether and how to blow up the roster of the defending NBA champions this summer for a reunion with Durant, who dramatically split from Golden State in 2019 for the Brooklyn Nets following back-to-back titles. -via Rolling Stone / September 11, 2022

Joe Biden: From a childhood in …

Joe Biden: From a childhood in segregated Louisiana to a career playing on the biggest stages in sports at the height of the Civil Rights Movement, Bill faced the hostility and hate of racism embedded in every part of American life. Yet, he never gave up. Throughout his life, he forced us to confront hard truths. And on this day, there are generations of Americans who are reflecting on what he meant to them as someone who played for the essential truth that every person is entitled to be treated with dignity and respect.

U.S. officials and Russia experts have …

U.S. officials and Russia experts have described the trial, which was in its second day, as “theater,” with a guilty verdict seen as a foregone conclusion. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov warned Thursday that “attempts by the American side to make noise in public … don’t help the practical settlement of issues.” The White House said President Joe Biden called Griner’s wife on Wednesday to assure her that he’s doing all he can to obtain the athlete’s release, as soon as possible. They spoke after Biden read a letter from Griner in which she said she feared she’d never return home.

Cherelle Griner, the wife of detained …

Cherelle Griner, the wife of detained American basketball star Brittney Griner, released a statement Wednesday following a phone call with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, saying, “I am grateful to the both of them for the time they spent with me and for the commitment they expressed to getting BG home.”

In Cherelle Griner’s statement, which …

In Cherelle Griner’s statement, which she posted on Instagram, she wrote, “While I will remain concerned and outspoken until she is back home, I am hopeful in knowing that the President read my wife’s letter and took the time to respond. I know BG will be able to find comfort in knowing she has not been forgotten.”

To appeal for her freedom, Griner wrote …

To appeal for her freedom, Griner wrote a handwritten letter to President Joe Biden, which was delivered July 4. Griner’s wife, Cherelle, said they’ve not yet heard from Biden. Below, you can read excerpts of the WNBA star’s powerful words (via ESPN): “As I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I’m terrified I might be here forever.”

Brittney Griner pens letter to Joe Biden asking for help freeing her

WNBA star Brittney Griner, detained in Russia since February, sent a letter to the U.S. president asking him to do everything possible to bring her back to America. Griner, jailed on drug-dealing charges, pleaded for her freedom and said she is terrified she will not be able to leave Russia. “…as I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I’m terrified I might be here forever”