The Curry-Rivers family is pretty tight-knit. But then, when it comes to the game, no favors are given, and none taken. The victories, defeats, and baskets scored or blocked are all taken quite seriously. And, Austin Rivers recently narrated an incident to describe how entrenched this NBA rivalry is in the extended family. Things are so serious that a Playoff series loss to Stephen Curry once got in the way of Austin’s vacation plans with the two clans in Fiji.
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Outside of basketball rivalry, the two families share a loving bond. Callie Rivers, Doc Rivers’ daughter (and Austin’s sister), is married to Seth Curry. But during that summer vacation, in 2022, not everybody in their family was celebrating.
“We had a huge family trip in Fiji. It was all the Currys and all the Rivers. I didn’t go,” Austin told Overtime‘s Megan Patricia in an interview. “We had just lost to the Warriors. I’m like, ‘Steph, you not about to fly me out on vacation after just knocking me out of the Playoffs bro.’”
Steph was in celebration mode when he booked an island in Fiji for the Rivers and the Currys. But Austin was still fuming over the postseason loss.
In the first-round matchup between the Denver Nuggets and the Golden State Warriors, Curry averaged 28 points en route to a 4-1 gentleman’s sweep. The Warriors eventually finished the season with the Larry O’Brien trophy with Curry hoisting his first Finals MVP award.
The Warriors star was understandably generous after his all-conquering season, something that Austin could not appreciate at all back then.
“He paid for the whole thing — flights, island rented out. This dude just had like 40 on my head top. There’s no way I’m getting on a flight and just be like ‘Hey Steph’, hell no,” Austin said.
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Austin’s father, Doc, was possibly in Fiji that summer. After all, he was coaching the Philadelphia 76ers at the time and had no reason to be frustrated with Steph’s fourth championship run. For Austin, the relationship with Steph had always been competitive, much before it became familial.
Austin once wanted to slap Curry
Last year, during an appearance on the Ringer NBA podcast, Austin revealed how different the dynamic between him and Steph was before they became in-laws. He particularly recalled a moment from his Lob City Clippers days when the Chef’s on-court dominance irked him the most.
“I was on the Clippers when he did the thing, where he dribbled through the whole team and turned around, shot the three,” Austin recounted. “I was at the game where he did the behind the back, and Chris [Paul] fell.”
These are among the top highlights of Steph’s career. However, being a player on the receiving end is an understandably frustrating experience. For Austin though, more than just the performance, Curry’s playfulness infuriated him the most.
“I don’t like when he’s doing his little dancing s**t. I wanted to slap the s**t out of him when he was doing that s**t. Now that I’m watching it [as a fan], I love it,” Austin added.
After 11 seasons in the NBA, Austin is currently working as an analyst for ESPN. He hasn’t officially retired yet. He’s simply put enough distance between himself and the hardwood to enjoy Steph’s brilliance without remembering all the times that it burned him and his teams.
