From rap albums to IPO: Steph Curry on the Golden State Warriors player who prodded him to invest in Silicon Valley
Steph Curry and Andre Iguodala
© Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
The career of a professional basketball player doesn’t last that long. If you’re good enough, you may stay for 8–10 years in the NBA. If you’re one of the greats, you’ll have a fruitful 15 to 20-year career. Still, this is a relatively short stint for a professional career. NBA players have accepted this as a fact. That’s why they’ve directed their money towards various investments. For Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry, there was one teammate who made him focus on business — the same player analysts deemed the most critical part of the Dubs’ championship run.
Silicon Valley
As the saying goes, Rome wasn’t built in a day. The Warriors also did not just wake up one day and decided to establish a dynasty. There were a lot of key moments that led to multiple championships. One of them was the signing of Andre Iguodala in July of 2013 to a four-year, $48 million deal.
Interestingly, Iguodala did not just help create a winning culture within the organization. According to Steph Curry, the defensive stalwart also influenced him to think about his post-playing career. He did not have to look too far. Curry could just invest in the companies from their neighborhood.
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“When he came from Denver in 2013, he came with passion behind it and some connections and he started to pique everybody's interest,” Curry says. “Our conversations in the locker room started to change drastically from rap albums and cars and all that type of stuff to like: You see that company's IPO? And then obviously the awareness and exposure to what's in our backyard, Silicon Valley—he was the first that really opened my eyes to what was possible in that arena,” Curry said, per GQ.
Curry has several investments in his start-up portfolio. One of them is Splyce, a tech company whose mission is to become an automated marketing service for various brands. Other companies he has invested in are SnapTravel and Telstra Ventures. The four-time NBA champion also owns his own media company, Unanimous. Together with Eureka Productions, Unanimous co-produced the sports reality competition show Holey Moley.
Iguodala’s legacy
Curry’s revelation shows how important Iguodala is to his career on and off the court. Defense was just one of the things he brought to the table. Time and time again, analysts have mentioned that Andre is one of the smartest players on the court. They have compared his basketball IQ to that of Scottie Pippen.
So, it is no surprise that the Warriors won their fourth title in eight years the season after bringing him back in. Iguodala is the type of a player who doesn’t have to play much to impact the game.
