Could it be that Warriors guard Stephen Curry is making a late push for Most Valuable Player in the NBA this season?
Curry is in the midst of arguably the best scoring run of his career, and his latest show finished with 49 points including 10 made 3-pointers for Curry in a 107-96 win against the 76ers in Philadelphia on Monday.
The Warriors’ superstar scored 30 or more points for the 11th straight game, the only player aged 33 or older to do so, passing NBA legends Michael Jordan and the late, great Kobe Bryant.
Curry also hit 10 3s or more for the fourth time in the last five games, and he has six such games this season alone. No other NBA player in the league’s history has more than five games with 10 or more 3-pointers made.
Plus, there’s this:
And there’s this, too: Curry now leads the NBA in scoring at 31.4 points a game, and the Warriors have won six of their last eight games.
Whew. It can all get a bit overwhelming. Leave it to multiple-time NBA champion with the Lakers, Earvin “Magic” Johnson to break it down simply. Here’s his tweet, calling Curry the real MVP.
Could Curry have butted into the MVP conversation with less than a month to go in the season? Curry has been too good to ignore, that’s for certain. With Lakers superstar LeBron James out with an injury, there’s one fewer candidate for NBA observers to watch, which only helps Curry’s spotlight.
If the Warriors keep winning, Curry could definitely steal this award, which would be his third NBA MVP. That’s a big if, however, simply because the Warriors have shown to be a mediocre team this season. It’s up to Curry to turn this recent run of scoring and wins into a longer trend that pushes Golden State into the playoffs.
If he does, then Curry would deserve the award. But forget the future. Enjoy the present. Curry is putting on a show that nobody has seen before. Next up, a Wednesday game against the Wizards to close a five-game road trip.
(Photo credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports)
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