Looking to take advantage of its Olympic shine, NBCUniversal will be airing the pilot episode of new Peacock series Mr. Throwback with gold medal-winning basketball hero Stephen Curry on NBC September 12 in primetime.

Mr. Throwback is a comedy featuring a down-on-his-luck sports memorabilia dealer who attempts to turn his life around by reuniting with Curry, a teammate in sixth grade.

From its premierw on August 8,  Mr. Throwback was a Top 5 Peacock original comedy

The series got a big push during the Paris Summer Olympics as Curry and the USA hoopers were winning the gold. During the games, Mr. Throwback was Peacock’s top non-sports program.

NBCU said 77% of the Peacock account holders who watched Mr. Throwback also watched Olympic basketball.

NBCU has already made a big investment in basketball, agreeing to a $2.6 billion year deal to air NBA games on NBC and Peacock starting with the 2025-6 season.

In addition to Curry, Mr. Throwback stars Ego Nwodim and Adam Pally.

Curry and Pally are executive producers of the show, along with David Caspe, Matthew Libman, Daniel Libman, Erick Peyton and David Wain.

Mr. Throwback is produced by Universal Television with Unanimous Media.

Mr. Throwback, a basketball comedy featuring hoops superstar Stephen Curry and Adam Pally, premieres on Peacock August 8. The show follows sports memorabilia dealer Danny, played by Pally, who is down on his luck–divorced, a failing business, mob thugs chasing him down for money he owes. 

As a child, Danny was a basketball standout and a teammate of Curry’s. He attained a level of fame as a kid on the court, but that was undone when it was revealed that he wasn’t quite the age he claimed to be. As an adult, facing serious challenges, Danny reaches out to Curry for a lifeline. He crafts an elaborate untruth for Curry, and Curry agrees to help. 

Executive producer David Caspe said the project began when he and Daniel and Matthew Libman, all of whom worked on Happy Endings together years ago, with Pally, heard Curry wanted to do a show. The producers held a brainstorm on Zoom. 

“The three of us are huge Chicago Bulls fans. We grew up in the heyday of the Bulls, and we’re obsessed with The Last Dance,” Caspe told B+C. “We wondered, is there a comedy version of The Last Dance and what would that be? We landed on this idea.”

The concept was shared with Curry, currently in Paris with the U.S. men’s basketball team (it is the U.S. versus Serbia in a semifinal August 8), and he liked it, and wanted to be part of it. (Curry is both a cast member and executive producer.)  

“We couldn’t believe he wanted to be involved in something we were doing,” said Matthew Libman. “We were delighted and thrilled.”

Curry hasn’t done much acting, though Daniel Libman noted that he’s an in-demand pitchman for commercials. “He was so natural and took to it so easily–it was pretty remarkable,” he said. “He said he’s been coached his entire life and wanted to be coached and directed.”

One day during the shoot, Curry had to duck out for a workout, with the Olympics looming and all. He, Matthew and Adam ventured to an old Golden State Warriors facility in downtown Oakland, where the team was holding a kids basketball camp, and a couple hundred attendees were told a surprise was about to arrive. 

Then Steph Curry walked in. 

“I watched 200 kids in Warriors jerseys absolutely lose their minds,” Matthew said. “I saw him go around and chat with kids, high-five everyone, take pictures with everyone, and give a little clinic.”

Ego Nwodim plays Curry’s assistant Kimberly. 

The producers say Pally has a decent hoops game too, though not quite Curry-esque. He can bring tricky characters to life on the screen as well. “In this role in particular, he excels at bringing likeability and humanity to an otherwise, not despicable character, but a character doing despicable things,” said Caspe. “You’re taken by the fact that you root for and feel for Adam’s character, despite the fact that he’s doing such terrible stuff. And the fact that he’s hilarious.”

Mr. Throwback features a mockumentary format. All six episodes are out August 8. 

Asked about highlights from the show, Daniel mentioned Adam and Tracy Letts, who plays Danny’s father and youth team coach, in a car in episode three. “That was a product of the actors really digging in, wanting to find out what the scene was and how to play it,” said Daniel. “It’s a master class of comedy and emotion.”

Caspe noted that Letts has a Pulitzer and a Tony.

“We have no business even knowing him,” Daniel said. 

Besides Happy Endings, Caspe and the Libmans also worked on Black Monday and Kenan. 

Asked about their influences on Mr. Throwback, Daniel mentioned This Is Spinal Tap, The Office (U.K.) and the original White Men Can’t Jump. Matthew cited The Simpsons, Airplane and The Naked Gun. 

David, for his part, mentioned Bruce Springsteen. “I like art about dads, and this is art about dads,” he said. 

The producers got a real kick out of working with Steph Curry on the show. “The impact he has on people,” Matthew said. “He makes people’s dreams come true every single day.”

Stephen Curry will host the ESPYs July 20. Curry, a guard on the Golden State Warriors, was MVP of the 2022 NBA finals. The ESPYs take place at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles and are on ABC starting at 8 p.m. ET. 

"Steph has long been one of the brightest stars in the sports constellation, and we're thrilled to have him share his passion for sports, his wit and his boundless talent with the ESPYs," Rob King, executive editor-at-large, ESPN Content, said. "Whether shining on the court, engaging with fans on social platforms or demonstrating a commitment to communities through varied philanthropic acts, he's a singular performer who'll undoubtedly add luster to our celebration of some of this year's most compelling moments."

Curry is nominated for several awards, including best male athlete and best record-breaking performance. 

"I've had the pleasure of attending the ESPYs but never imagined I'd have the privilege of hosting this special event," Curry said. "As someone who loves the intersection of sports and entertainment, I look forward to delivering an exciting show for the fans while we celebrate the athletes who created the top moments of the year."

Curry will be celebrated as the best NBA player while Shohei Ohtani gets best MLB player and Cooper Kupp is best in the NFL. 

Dick Vitale, college basketball broadcaster on ESPN, will be the recipient of the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance. Vitale is 82 and is battling cancer. The Jimmy V Award is named for the late Jim Valvano, Vitale's former broadcast partner at ESPN. 

Vitali Klitschko gets the Arthur Ashe for Courage Award. The former heavyweight champion boxer is the mayor of Kyiv. ■

Outpointing the Houston Rockets by 15 in the fourth quarter, the Golden State Warriors extended their franchise-best winning streak to 14 games and scored the biggest rating ever for a regional sports network covering the club's regular-season action.

Comcast SportsNet Bay Area netted a 6.43 household rating in the San Francisco-Oakland DMA with its Dec. 10 telecast of the Warriors' 105-93 win over the Rockets, according to Nielsen data. RSN officials said that delivery marked the higest-rated Warriors regular season telecast on CSN or Fox Sports Net in the market.

Wednesday night's contest ranks as the highest-rated locally produced regular season game in the DMA since Feb. 7,1995, when a Warriors-Bulls game, featuring Michael Jordan, aired on KPIX Channel 5, said CSN officials.

Peaking at a 7.37 rating in the 9:30 p.m. (PT) quarter hour, CSN Bay Area recorded an 82% jump over the Warriors' season-to-date average, as the team, led by its sterling backcourt tandem of Stephon Curry (pictured) and Klay Thompson, improved its NBA-best record to 19-2.

The  game was the market's highest-rated program in all of television among households, adults 18 to 49 (3.60), adults 25 to 54 (4.07), men 18 to 49 (4.84) and 25 to 54 (5.72) on Wednesday.