The Golden State Warriors weren’t exactly an illustrious franchise back in 2009. In a Forbes article written at the time, the team was ranked as the 18th most valuable in the NBA, listed at a valuation of $315 million. They were historically one of the most down-trodden franchises up to that point, and played their games in one of the most run-down stadiums in all of sports.

NBA: Warriors Valuation Has Skyrocketed In Last 15 Years

The Warriors franchise valuation:

2009 (Curry’s rookie year) – $315 million

2024 – $8.2 billion

(via @Sportico) pic.twitter.com/NNMbek0VOe

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) February 22, 2024

But during the 2009 NBA Draft, the Warriors selected a player that would change the fortunes of the franchise, both on the court and off.

He was seen as wildly undersized and injury prone during his first couple of years in the league, but Stephen Curry quickly became known as the greatest shooter of all-time. In his fourteen and a half seasons with Golden State, Curry has twice been named the league’s MVP, and has led his team to four NBA Championships while being accused of “ruining the game” due to his other-wordly shooting skills.

The effect that he has had on the economics of the franchise is incredible. It took some time, but the team eventually moved out of the decrepit Oracle Arena in 2019, and into brand-new digs in the Mission Bay District of San Francisco.

The Chase Center might as well be called “The House That Curry Built”.

In 2024, the Warriors are now the most valuable franchise in the NBA. In October, they were given a $7.7 billion evaluation by Forbes, a full $1.1 billion higher than the #2 New York Knicks and $3 billion more than the Boston Celtics at #4. But in an even more recent report released by Sportico, Golden State’s valuation is now closer to $8.2 billion.

No Other Team Has Seen Such An Increase

Our Top 100 Most Valuable Sports Teams list has been SHOCKING to sports fans everywhere looking for explanations.

Tune into @sporticast today for all the how’s and whys of the latest from our valuations series ➡️ https://t.co/Y1nomwrImi https://t.co/g5mkC1WGzp pic.twitter.com/ZSekV4DZWa

— Sportico (@Sportico) February 22, 2024

In fewer than 15 years, the Warriors have gone from #18 to #1 in terms of franchise valuation, and their value has increased by a whopping 26 times in that span.

Of course, all franchise valuations across the NBA are rising. Teams are worth more than ever before, and no team is even remotely close to the $315 million that we saw the Warriors being worth in 2009. The lowest valuations for the 2023 season according to Forbes are the Memphis Grizzlies ($2.4 billion) and Minnesota Timberwolves ($2.5 billion).

Take the Los Angeles Lakers, for example. Their valuation in 2009 was $607 million (#1), and today sits at $6.4 billion (#3). That represents an increase of just over 10 times, which doesn’t even come close to the increase that the Warriors have seen.

The Curry Effect is very, very real.