Basketball upsets run deep for Austin Rivers, so much so that he admits to letting his pride come between him and his family. The former NBA guard appeared on the “Meg on the Mic” podcast, where he discussed the time he ditched an all-expense-paid family trip to sulk over a playoffs loss.
The disappointment occurred during the 2021-2022 season when the Denver Nuggets, his team at the time, were booted from championship contention by Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors. On the court, the two NBA stars are rivals, but outside of their professional careers, they are family. Steph’s younger brother, Seth, is married to Rivers’ sister, Callie.
On the Jan. 23 podcast episode, the 11-season veteran rehashed the toll the big loss had on him. “We had a huge family trip in Fiji. It was all the Rivers and all the Currys. I didn’t go,” he confessed. Adding that, “We had just lost to the Warriors. I’m like, you not about to fly me out on vacation after you just knocked me out of the playoffs.”
He admitted that he was stewing in his feelings, as he explained, “I can’t, as a man, have this man pay for the whole thing, fly to this island, rent it out. … This dude just had, like, 40 on my head, nah, there was no way I was getting on a flight and just be like, ‘Hey, Steph.’ Hell no.”
In the end, Rivers said he DM’d Curry that he would have to join in on the blended family gathering another time. “He was like, ‘Alright, man!’ If the roles reversed, it would have been the same thing. I promise you, if we would have beat them and I was playing the way he was playing and I did a family trip for all of us, Steph would have been like, ‘I got some business things,’” he said.
“Overtime” posted a clip of the podcast episode and his sister-in-law, Sydel Curry-Lee, found the story comical. “Hahahahh I’m weak!! They keep getting better each time though so the next one is the one to be at,” she wrote.
Also in the comment section, the league’s all-time 3-point record holder was especially amused by the tale, as he wrote, “Guess we gotta wait till I hang the jersey up for the real Sibs & Sigs trip.” He then followed his comment with a row of laughing emojis
“Definition of blocking your own blessings! Lmao You betta let that man pay!” a commenter wrote. Rivers offered up a response to those who shared a similar sentiment, commenting, “Y’all can call it ego that man has caused too much pain to my family lol.”
Someone who recalled seeing moments from the trip on social media remarked, “No wonder why he was never in the pics lmao I always wondered.”
Austin Rivers being SICK of Steph Curry for 2 and a half minutes 😭😭
— Automatic (@automaticnba) August 24, 2024
Steph averages 30/6/6 on 70 TS% against Austin Rivers in the last decade. https://t.co/f1MGLOGyll pic.twitter.com/i5SlQ8lJpK
Unsurprisingly, this is not the first time Rivers’ blood has boiled over his in-law’s skills on the court. In November, he admitted he once wanted to “slap the s–t” out of Steph Curry over his celebratory antics.
“I was on the Clippers when he did the thing, where he dribbled through the whole team and turned around, shot the three,” Rivers told The Ringer NBA Show. “I was at the game where he did the behind the back, and Chris [Paul] fell.”
Rivers added, “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.”
Rivers did, however, note that as a fan he loves the display, sharing, “Now that I’m watching it [as a fan], I love it.”
