What makes Warriors' Stephen Curry so popular?

He’s humble. He’s of normal height. He has a lovely wife and two adorable kids he’s proud of. He lives a clean life. He seems to be a real, genuine, nice guy.

He is also the finest basketball player in the game today, the first unanimous Most Valuable Player ever and the internationally idolized face of the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors.

Stephen Curry.

His life is unattainable for most people, his riches and fame beyond our wildest dreams.

Still, somehow, Curry is an everyman. We call him Steph, as if we know him. Like he’s our neighbor or friend.

“I think he’s a great person, all around,” said Dena Nelson of Cotati, who cautions that she’s no die-hard basketball fanatic.

Nelson and her daughter, Noelle Stockham, 11, stopped by a Warriors memorabilia stand Tuesday in Rohnert Park and bought a yellow No. 30 tank top. Curry’s number, of course.

Curry is the kind of superstar athlete who sparks record T-shirt sales, but he’s also a transcendent figure who crosses over to widespread public consciousness, beyond the scope of people who read the sports pages.

How does this happen? What separates Curry or Michael Jordan or Tom Brady and gives them such broad appeal?

Why is Curry more than a mighty fine basketball player?

University of San Francisco associate professor of sport management Michael Goldman studies just those kinds of questions.

“You’ve got to have two things going for you,” he said.

First, you have to be very good at your sport. Not a superstar, but it helps. Check.

Second, you need to have an interesting personality. Something regular people can relate to. Check.

“It’s about an authentic, individual personal brand. What we have in Steph Curry is the family, an authenticity, an underdog kind of brand that everyone across the United States and increasingly internationally can identify with,” he said.

“He’s just a good kid, his upbringing, his faith,” said Tracey Redfield-Lyon of Arizona, who operates the seasonal pop-up Warriors memorabilia shop on Rohnert Park Expressway east of Highway 101.

“He’s just one of those solid kids. He’s humble,” she said. “And you don’t see people who make that much money stay humble very often.”

She said lots of people stopped in last week to buy Warriors gear for Mother’s Day - not your typical flowers, brunch or candy gifts for Mom.

Curry, his wife and their two kids were the cover story of the June issue of Parents magazine. Not many, if any, pro athletes have done that before.

That may be a testament to Curry’s universal attraction, going well beyond sports nuts to even appeal to moms. Curry likely would be welcome at anyone’s dinner table.

“I’d like to have him as a son,” Redfield-Lyon offered.

“He’s a family person,” said Nelson, buying herself a yellow tank top. “That’s why he’s easy to like – he’s not, for lack of a better word, a diva.”

Noelle said she likes that Curry has fun when he plays.

“He’s not snotty,” she said.

Even when words of praise are heaped on Curry, he defers to others. He praises his teammates, says it’s all about making each other better.

He doesn’t speak of himself in the third person as if he’s royalty or above it all.

Curry’s Twitter description of himself may be telling: “Believer. Husband to Ayesha Curry, father to Riley and Ryan, son, brother. Golden State Warriors guard. Davidson Wildcat.”

Are those things in order of importance? We don’t necessarily know, of course, but the fact that Curry defines himself as a person far more complex than just a basketball star makes regular people care, USF prof Goldman said.

“Here’s a guy who, in his college career, wasn’t regarded as someone who could reach the heights he has. The average basketball enthusiast, the average recreational player, the average fan, says, ‘Hey, I can identify with him,’?” Goldman said.

“He’s a good guy and seems to care about the right things. He’s got the right package.”

As the NBA awarded Curry with his second consecutive MVP award Tuesday, his teammates described the man many of them think of as a brother.

“A much better person than he is a basketball player,” backup center Festus Ezeli said.

“Hardest-working dude I know and very well deserved,” Harrison Barnes tweeted.

Third-year player Ian Clark, new to Golden State this season, called Curry one of the “hardest-working yet most-humble guys I’ve ever met. Learned a lot from you this year.”

Off the court, Curry has mapped out a conservative, calm sponsorship plan, Goldman said, which again differentiates him from other superstars. Starting with superstars Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods, many athletes make more money - and for longer term - with endorsements than they do playing sports.

“He’s not doing it like LeBron James, just the major money. He’s taking it gently,” Goldman said of Curry.

That approach involves signing only with sponsors that align with his own world view and wholesome image. Curry partners with Brita water filtration company, JP Morgan Chase financial services and Under Armour sports clothing company (which within hours after he won the MVP award was sold out of a special edition two-pack “back 2 back MVP pack” of basketball shoes).

A recent study of sports personalities and their marketability by brand analysis research firm Repucom found Curry was “the most appealing, aspirational and most influential” NBA player.

Curry is the only athlete in his sport to finish first in each of the seven attributes Repucom tracks.

“To the extent that a follower can psychologically connect with the team, an athlete, a sport, the ability to see yourself not just as a follower of, not just as a fan of, but as the 12th man, as in that person’s corner - someone you see yourself embodied in - that’s the kind of things we’re starting to see with Steph,” Goldman said.

“That’s why he’s so powerful with these brands. He’s someone we want to connect with, so any brand that can connect with him has that halo effect.”

Back at the parking-lot Warriors store, Novato resident James Tamayo shopped for a birthday T-shirt for his father.

Tamayo said he’s not much of a Warriors’ fan, but his dad likes Curry a lot.

“He’s definitely motivating,” Tamayo said. “Just the way he plays. He seems normal, I guess.”

But what happens when your sports hero turns out to be too normal? What if he or she gets caught taking drugs or driving drunk, or worse?

Doesn’t putting someone like Curry - who seems to be universally liked and respected - on a pedestal set you up for heartbreak? Everyone is flawed.

So he scores 40 points in his first game back from a knee injury, including a record 17 in overtime, and sparks his team’s emotional and actual comeback. What if it turns out Curry is a jerk? What if he cheats on his wife and the whole good-guy image is a sham?

Goldman thinks pop culture consumers are becoming savvier these days. They know sports are entertainment and athletes are putting on a show.

But, still, we look for moments of magic, moments we can dive into with both feet and live and breathe the competition with our beloved teams.

“Like last night’s overtime performance … the emotion and the social benefits of being a great fan and going through ups and down with your team, I think that’s what it’s about,” Goldman said. “We all have to be careful about it. In life, there are going to be disappointments.

“But if you’re not there for the ride, you won’t get any of it.”

You can reach Lori A. Carter at 521-5470 or lori.carter@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @loriacarter.