Lakers Rookie Quincy Olivari Gifted Signed Sneakers from Idol Steph Curry
In a 132-74 loss by the Lakers, you may not expect rookie point guard Quincy Olivari would have much to smile about. As it turned out, the undrafted Rice University and Xavier Musketeers alum had the night of a lifetime.
After playing 39 minutes, Olivari was the leading scorer with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists. Though he also had several turnovers, that did not deter Olivari as he shared: "My dad has preached the same thing since I picked up a basketball: Did I play hard, and did I have fun? I definitely had fun."
The in-game fun extended after the final buzzer when the 23-year-old was able to meet his idol, the all-time leading 3-point scorer and Golden State Warriors legend, Steph Curry. In his post-game interview with reporters, Olivari shared he was able to show Curry a video from his youth of the future Hall of Famer autographing a jersey for him.
"It's crazy because I liked him since I was in, like, sixth grade. I don't even know what to say, that's my favorite player ever," Olivari stated as his voice began to tremble with emotion. "The first thing he told me: 'I'm a big fan of your game' and, like, truth be told, I'm a big fan of him."
Tearing up, Olivari shared: "I had his jersey, he signed it twice. I used to sleep under that jersey and, like, I just wanted to be like him so bad."
Olivari went on to state that he and Curry were able to meet up again off-court in the arena and Curry gifted him a pair of sneakers.
"He gave me a pair of his shoes and signed them, like, that meant the world to me," Olivari said, wiping tears from his face.
After the game, Olivari took to Instagram to post a carousel of images and videos with the caption "Dreams do come true." Within the post, Olivari shared a photo of the sneakers gifted to him, a photo of him in his youth with Curry's number 30 Golden State Warriors jersey in front of a Christmas tree, and a video of Curry signing the jersey for young Olivari at the American Airlines arena. Curry went on to comment on the post: "Pleasure bro. Appreciate you being a real one and letting me know the history!!"
Though Olivari did not share the court with his idol as Curry sat out the pre-season game, Olivari could receive the best Christmas gift of a lifetime if signed to a contract by the Lakers: playing against his hero in the blockbuster Lakers-Warriors Prime Time Christmas Day 2024 NBA Game.
Lauren is a writer, collector, Orlando Magic basketball fan, and artist. Her writing can also be found on Hobby News Daily. You can follow her at instagram.com/laurengoeshere.