Former NBA player Gilbert Arenas has officially gone on record siding with Ayesha Curry following her recent, controversial interview in which she revealed she never “had plans on being a wife or mother.”
Curry has been going viral for weeks following her comments about life before marriage with Steph Curry, marking her most viral interview yet since that infamous 2019 “Red Table Talk” interview where she admitted craving more “male attention.”
Ayesha and Steph first met as teenagers in a church youth group in Charlotte, North Carolina. They reconnected years later in Los Angeles while Steph was in town for the ESPY Awards. Their friendship quickly turned romantic, and by 2011, the two tied the knot — long before either became household names.
‘She Ain’t Tired of Putting Her Foot in Her Mouth’: Ayesha Curry’s Latest Comment Leaves Fans Wondering If She Secretly Regrets Her Marriage to Steph
The viral interview clip from Ayesha’s August 2025 appearance on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast sparked widespread backlash on social media, as she told host Alex Cooper that her 14-year marriage to Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry was not part of her original life plan.
“No. So I didn’t want kids. I didn’t want to get married,” Curry said. “I thought I was going to be a career girl’ and that’s it.”
While social media has been in an uproar since her comments — with some interpreting her words as expressing dissatisfaction with her life — Arenas claims he completely understood her perspective.
“I might be the only person that might be on his wife’s side because I understand what she is actually saying and the fact that so many people are hating this woman,” Arenas said in a video shared to his Instagram. “Y’all are lost. I’m sorry. Y’all are not understanding what she is really saying.”
He added, “She is saying she didn’t see herself with kids. She didn’t see herself married. She seen herself as a career woman.”
The former Washington Wizards star went onto praise Ayesha for not “considering herself as a basketball “groupie” or as what it traditionally means to be a basketball wife.,
He applauded her for not having the same “preconceived” idea as some women looking to be attached to an NBA baller.
He continued to defend Curry’s stance, claiming her genuine intentions — simply being with Steph without knowing what his future in the NBA would hold — set her apart from other women who purposely sought out players for their money and lifestyle.
“Think about the rest of these hoes that are intentionally wanting to be hoes. They want. your money. They want to be NBA wives to live the NBA wife life. That’s what she’s saying. That’s what I’m listening to,” Arenas concluded.
Fans sounded off in the comments after the athlete passionately defending another man’s wife
“Yea I saw it as a woman that grew up with goals that she didn’t get to reach because her husband [is] the greatest shooter that ever lived lol but that’s jus me. I’m sure she don’t hate her kids or her life, it’s just not the life she saw for herself at a younger age,” said one follower in agreement with Arenas.
Another added, “When men say the same thing and then get married, have children, it’s not a problem. They want women silenced — sit next to your husband, raise those kids, f*** your dreams and shut up. Thank you for this, Gil.”
However, not everyone saw the conversation in a positive light.
“If you’re married, you represent your spouse publicly. It’s just that simple! She out of pocket,” one user wrote, offering a different perspective.
Another person chimed in, “Yeah I hear you Unc but what about when she pulled off that ring you don’t play like that.”
During Ayesha’s 2017 interview on “The Real,” the actress was seen tugging on her wedding ring to take it off after a shirtless man brought out a tray of champagne in glasses for each lady to drink.
The man walked around to each host to give them a drink before approaching Ayesha, who playfully covered her eyes and grabbed a cocktail. Despite being a joke, many called it rude and disrespectful to the foundation that she and Steph built together.
Several followers expressed empathy for Curry’s point of view. Still, they suggested that she keep such revelations private, between herself, her husband, and a therapist, rather than sharing them on national platforms. Others, meanwhile, couldn’t move past a previous comment she made about craving attention from other men.
In 2022, Curry appeared on Red Table Talk and explained to Jada Pinkett Smith that the lack of outside male attention — especially compared to the groupies who surrounded her husband — made her feel as if something was wrong with her.
“Something that really bothers me, and honestly has given me a sense of a little bit of an insecurity, is the fact that yeah, there are all these women, like, throwing themselves [at him], but me, like the past 10 years, I don’t have any of that,” Curry said. “I have zero — this sounds weird — but, like, male attention, and so then I begin to internalize it, and I’m like, ‘Is something wrong with me?’”
Over the years, Curry has faced criticism for oversharing in interviews and alluding to internal or marital issues, but the couple appears to remain strong.
In a previous interview with People, “The Seasoned Life” cookbook author shared that the secret to maintaining balance in their marriage was prioritizing their relationship.
“I think for us, our relationship always comes first. Then we’re parents,” she said in February, later adding, “And that works for us because then you have two happy people raising the kids in the house. So the family sector in our lives always comes first.”
Her most recent Instagram post on Oct. 7 reflects that sentiment, featuring snapshots from her “life lately,” with images showing her cozying up with her family, enjoying mother-daughter time, and sharing candid moments of affection and playfulness with her longtime love.