Stephen Curry, the Olympics and his first sitcom, 'Mr. Throwback'

Stephen Curry took his share of rookie hazing as a Golden State Warrior newbie in 2009. He was forced to sing "Happy Birthday" to veteran players and, as he puts it, "having to wear ridiculously ugly, childish backpacks. Stuff like that."

That was so 15 years ago for the four-time world champion point guard and two-time NBA MVP superstar. That is, until Curry moved on to his inaugural acting season. He's starring in his first scripted series, Peacock's "Mr. Throwback" (all six episodes streaming Aug. 8).

Curry, 36, says it's been a ball honing his acting chops with comedian Adam Pally, who plays his fictional sixth-grade star teammate, who's now a washed-up memorabilia dealer, and "Saturday Night Live" star Ego Nwodim, who plays his no-nonsense business partner.

"But there's been some rookie hazing going on too," Curry tells USA TODAY, explaining that Nwodim stays in hard-nosed character even when the cameras aren't rolling. Just to mess with him. "I don't know if she's joking or not. And she doesn't break. So I'm walking on eggshells, because they're the vets. I'm the rookie."

Curry, currently gunning for gold on the U.S. men's Olympic basketball team, spoke to USA TODAY about putting his NBA life on TV in "Mr. Throwback," which he also executive produces.

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Question: You actually got your acting start with 1990s Burger King commercials with your NBA star dad Dell Curry and brother Seth. What are your memories?

Stephen Curry: I remember having to memorize the lines. That was a challenge. And the director told us often not to look at the camera. And there's one version where my dad carries my brother into the Burger King, and (Seth) looks straight into the camera. And they had to use that cut. That thought still pops into my brain every time and makes me laugh.

Adam Pally plays the star of your sixth-grade basketball team. How is Pally's game now?

I can't believe I'm saying this; don't put this in the story. We had a scene where we played one-on-one, and he actually scored on me one time. I'm sure he's got the clip on a constant loop on his phone and has texted it to everyone he knows. But it's a solid game. It is very believable that he was a junior-high star. Let's put it like that. That's his ceiling.

As executive producer, can you make sure that scene never sees the light of day?

We'll see how funny it is. We might use it. And I'm sure he'll hustle and try his hardest to keep that in there.

What's the professional collector's world like around you? And name your most memorable memorabilia moment.

Not to say that it's sleazy, but you have to be somewhat of a hustler and take advantage of the right opportunities in the memorabilia space. It's kind of a rat race. Adam's character is in that, but evolves.

In my second year, I bought a bunch of custom suits and had my name stitched on the jacket linings. You go through different style trends, so I cleared my closet and donated them to the Salvation Army. Maybe 10 years later, somebody brought this suit back, showed me the name and said, "I bought your suit at auction." Definitely the wildest one I've seen so far.

How much of the real Stephen Curry is in "Mr. Throwback"?

It's definitely an exaggerated, satirical version of me. So I'm playing myself, but it's not me. The basketball scenes and the scenarios I find myself in – from the plane to the locker room to the arena – we try to keep that real. That's been my office for 15 years.

There was online Curry fury about the questionable casting of the actor who played you in the FX NBA drama "Clipped." Do you have any thoughts?

(Groans) Yeah, I watched it. That was lazy casting, for sure. That made me laugh, along with some of the basketball scenes. That's the stuff we want to avoid (in "Mr. Throwback"). "Clipped" is an interesting story because you're visiting something that really happened, telling it from different perspectives. But that casting was crazy. And as far as our casting, we don't have to worry about that. I'm playing me.

Why was filming "Mr. Throwback" delayed due to the early birth of your fourth child, Caius Chai, with your wife Ayesha last May?

We had everything planned out. Obviously, babies have their own schedule. I wasn't going to miss the birth of my son. But it's cool that we found the time to shoot this in the Bay Area before leaving for the Olympics. The energy was good with everyone asking about my family.

Speaking of Hollywood and family, what are your thoughts on Bronny James playing with the Lakers with his dad and your Team USA basketball Olympic partner, LeBron James?

It's something we've never seen in the league, a first in NBA history. So it's special. It's still kind of surreal, for their family first and foremost. But for NBA fans as well. We have followed Bronny for so many years. I want to talk a lot about it with LeBron while we're (Olympic) teammates. And then they become the enemies in the fall, when we play the Lakers.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Steph Curry on Olympics and Peacock's 'Mr. Throwback'