Riley Curry: The NBA’s Most Polarizing Figure

Over the last year or so there has been a lot of talk of the strained relationships between professional athletes and the media.

Stars like Marshawn Lynch and Russell Westbrook have been criticized for their sometimes antagonistic behavior towards reporters. But this is something else. The feelings of grown men and women all over the country are being attacked by a terrible two year old girl.

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Riley Curry, rebel daughter of decent NBA player Stephen Curry, was on a rampage last night after the Golden State Warriors’ 110-106 victory over the Houston Rockets in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. The littlest Curry (for now) created a really hostile environment last night by demanding that her father “keep quiet.” It was an aggressive power move. Her father, in a moment of fear, admitted to every one in attendance that “she’s just like this. She’s only two. It’s the craziest thing.” Poor Stephen.

Tensions were running high during the press conference. The young Riley Curry threw more punches at the media than were thrown during Mayweather-Pacquiao. While her father was answering a question, the tyrant toddler yawned. Though it hasn’t been confirmed, it could be because she found her father’s responses to be boring and even disingenuous. Or perhaps it was past her bedtime. Who knows?

Though it’s pretty obvious Stephen has no control in the relationship, the real victim here is the good media of the world. As exemplified in the tweet above, a man with a blog was personally victimized by Riley’s antics to the point where he had to delete his valid analysis. Or how about Brian Windhorst and Skip Bayless discussing the horrors of Riley’s presence (transcript here).

But it’s true. How dare Stephen Curry try to be a father when there are people that need to write stories about a bunch of sweaty guys throwing a ball around?!? It’s completely unprofessional and a disgrace to the sacred institution of the press conference.

But seriously guys, come on. Is this really a thing? Like, are we really doing this right now? It was a sweet moment between a father and his daughter after a hard day at work. Think of all the things NBA dads miss because they’re out on the road or in the gym all year long. Let him have this. Sure, Riley was a little antsy, but isn’t everyone at age 2? It’s a natural part of life that you accept and you work through it. And Steph Curry did. It’s not like he completely brushed off the questions he was being asked to tend to his daughter’s needs. He still gave them well thought out answers while being a dad.

And if we’re going to try to ban kids from press conferences, then that’s just ridiculous. One of the biggest problems that comes with professional sports and the relationship between athletes and media is that the players seem distant. They give cliché answers that are pretty close to rehearsed. The “we all played hard” or “I want to thank God” or “it was a team effort.” I’m not saying those aren’t valid responses — they are sometimes — but they occasionally just sound like players being polite. Having children at the podium humanizes stars. It shows another side to them that may actually tell more about their character than the usual responses that they give.

"Riley Curry cuteness level ="

I understand that members of the media have a job and have deadlines to make. But it’s cute and harmless (see photo above). There are more positives to bringing children than there are negatives. Sure, Riley Curry played a little hide-and-seek and then stormed off, but Steph didn’t. And this is marketing heaven for the NBA; bits about Riley will get more clicks than most game analysis. Besides, there are worse things to bring with you than your adorable daughter. For as difficult as athletes can be sometimes, the media can be just as stuck-up. Yes, your job is to pick their brains and get quotes and ideas, but it’s not all about the media. Sometimes athletes have to spend so much time pleasing them that they can’t be a person too.

So no, Steph Curry was not unprofessional in bringing up Riley with him. He was just being a good dad that wanted to see his daughter after work. To the writers, journalists, and media that are calling Curry out: stop, it’s not all about you. And we need fun that in today’s world of sports where it can get really tense.

So I hope Steph brings her again. And thank you Riley Curry for being awesome.