When the news broke that Jerry Richardson planned to sell the Carolina Panthers in the wake of sexual harassment allegations, everyone started wondering who the new owner or owners could be.
The first person to throw their hat in the ring was Sean Combs, a.k.a. P. Diddy, who did so in the most 2017 way possible.
https://twitter.com/Diddy/status/942572662311841797?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fthecomeback.com%2Fnfl%2Fdiddy-steph-curry-want-buy-carolina-panthers-immediately-sign-colin-kaepernick.html
A little over an hour after Diddy sent that tweet, Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry put it out there that he wanted to be a part of the deal as well.
I️ want in! https://t.co/XvvC1vo7xI
— Stephen Curry (@StephenCurry30) December 18, 2017
Curry grew up in Charlotte attended Charlotte Christian School before playing basketball at Davidson. His father is also a Charlotte sports icon, having played for the original Hornets for ten seasons.
But was Curry serious? Sure he’s got plenty of money in the bank but would he really want to throw a chunk of it into the mix for a professional football team while also playing professional basketball? Apparently so, according to comments he made to the press on Monday.
Stephen Curry opens up on being “very interested” in being part of new ownership of Carolina Panthers and has continued to look into ways to make that happen. #Warriors pic.twitter.com/KvKpsRLT4E
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) January 8, 2018
“It’s a pretty interesting opportunity. I’ve had conversations with plenty of people about it…I would say I’ve got a day job, but I’ve got people who are plugged in and trying to see how to make that happen. I [‘ve got] nothing really to say about it, other than I’m very interested and very willing to do what it takes to make that happen.”
Curry mentions that he’s been a fan of the Panthers since the team played its first season when he was seven. He says that the chance to be involved in something that feeds his “hometown vibe” and owning the local football team would certainly be one of those things.
What kind of football franchise owner would Curry be? Probably a fairly hands-off one, considering what he does for a living and how that crosses over with the NFL season.
“I don’t want to overblow it to say I’ll be flying back and forth to Charlotte in meetings all day, trying to have that kind of perspective. But I do think I bring a certain value to whatever ownership group it would be.”
If Steph were involved in an ownership group while also playing professionally, that would be something of an unprecedented situation in modern pro sports. Sure, back in the old days, it was common for there to be coach-owners and player-owners, but it’s a pretty unique situation that he could be in if it happens in 2018.
If Curry does decide to go for it, at least one person thinks he’ll do a great job of balancing the two interests.
Klay Thompson on Steph Curry having interest in owning the Carolina Panthers pic.twitter.com/1BhOuPucTD
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) January 8, 2018
As Steph notes towards the end of the interview, he never wants to be in a situation where Warriors fans are worried he’s concerning himself with Panthers business instead of focusing on winning another NBA Title, so if it does come to face, expect him to be something of a figurehead owner (like Jay-Z was with the Nets) rather than a wheeler-dealer.
