Ayesha Curry didn’t hold back about the highs and lows she experienced when her husband, Warriors superstar Stephen Curry, reached NBA stardom.
During Wednesday’s installment of the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, the Sweet July founder explained that she couldn’t stand being in the spotlight in the early stages of the point guard’s career — adding that she dealt with ruthless fans, breaches of privacy and negative comments about her appearance.
“It’s a double-edged sword because parts of it have afforded me doors to be opened,” Ayesha, 36, told host Alex Cooper. “I obviously have to walk through them and put in the work to stay in them. But that, I think, would be the elephant in the room. I’m grateful for that side of things, but on the flip side, I — in the beginning, I hated it so much.”
Ayesha, who has been married to Curry, 37, since 2011, remarked how she and the 11-time NBA All-Star had different visions about the future that clearly evolved.
“I did not sign up for it. I also always thought that, I didn’t know that he was going to end up playing basketball. He said he wanted to be a high school basketball coach. I thought I was going to be the girl out there getting it,” Ayesha said, laughing.
“So, I didn’t know. And it was weird. Sports fans are so different than maybe entertainment world fans. And oftentimes, it’s very ruthless so I wasn’t expecting that either.”
Ayesha, who has four kids with the four-time NBA champ, recalled a moment when she was nursing their daughter in the backseat of a car — and a fan opened the car door and spewed an insensitive remark.
“Stephen was putting a bike or something in the trunk, and this woman opens the car door and she sticks her head in and she [says], ‘I just wanted to see the baby.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, excuse me,’” Ayesha recounted.
“And she looks me dead in my face and goes, ‘Oh, honey, you know what you signed up for,’ and shuts the door on me. I was just crying because I’m postpartum. I was just bawling my eyes out. And I was like, ‘Is this what it’s going to be like?’ So, the beginning phases were kind of scary for me.”
When asked if she had received scrutiny about her looks or her actions, Ayesha said, “Oh, all the time.”
“I feel like I still do and that’s OK. It was so depressing [early on], and also it was during that time when social media was just ramping up, so people were going buck wild — and just spewing opinions on things that didn’t warrant opinions. I think for a while I was very critical of myself because of the things I was seeing,” she said.
Ayesha added that the Warriors star had been a solid support system for her.
“He’s so gracious,” she said. “He tries to resonate with me but he just can’t. And he also comes from a place where, [he’s like], ‘It’s f–king stupid. It’s not true … it’s not real’”
The couple celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary last month.
Earlier in the podcast, Ayesha explained that she didn’t see marriage and kids in her future because she was so consumed with her career as an actress and a desire to be an entrepreneur.
Longtime sweethearts, Ayesha and Stephen met at a church in Charlotte when they were teenagers.
They went on to welcome daughters Riley, 13, and Ryan,10, and sons Canon, 7, and Caius, 1.
Ayesha has since released cookbooks, launched the lifestyle brand and magazine “Sweet July” and has her own show, “Ayesha’s Home Kitchen,” on Food Network.
Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Stephen is entering his 17th NBA season, all with the Warriors, after Golden State selected him with the seventh overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.
The Warriors finished last season with a 48-34 mark, earning the seventh seed in the Western Conference before falling to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the conference semifinals.
