Whether the Warriors can make it back-to-back, as Curry has done, becomes the next question.
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Steph Curry made history today, becoming the first unanimous NBA MVP.
The Golden State Warrior point guard became the 11th player in the award’s 61-year history to take back-to-back MVP wins on Tuesday (May 10), and is the first ever to nab a unanimous decision from the judges.
Curry received 131 first-place votes from sports writers and broadcasters, plus one fan vote in the landslide, leaving him humbled.
Curry had been an overwhelming favorite to repeat as league MVP since the Warriors’ record-setting 24-0 start to the season, which broke the previous record for best start to a season by nine wins.
“I looked at the list of everybody who’s won the MVP award”, Curry said, “And they’re legends”. They have high-character guys.
Two players, Shaquille O’Neal (’00) and LeBron James (’13), fell one vote shy of unanimous selection.
He was the first Warriors player to lead the league in scoring since Rick Barry’s 35.6 scoring clip in 1966-67, joining Barry and Wilt Chamberlain as the only players in franchise history to average 30 or more points in a season. Aside from the Warriors having the best regular season in National Basketball Association history, Curry had one of the best individual seasons as well, shattering the record for three-pointers in a season once again in the process.
Things improved late. Curry was 0 for his first 9 from three-point range, but then hit a long three with 4 1/2 minutes left and had some good assists in the fourth quarter.
Steve Nash, also a two-time MVP victor, presented the prestigious trophy to Curry and welcomed him into the elite fraternity.
“To be the first unanimous MVP award victor is something I don’t even know how to put into words”.
“But I hope we take a moment every single day really when we come into the practice facility or into games to appreciate the bond that we have and how much fun we have playing every single day”. Don’t be stunned if it only gets better. “You can work every day to get better”. Here, video game Curry watches helplessly as IRL Curry drains seemingly impossible shots out of habit.
He’s back, yes. The rest of the league, you are allowed to shudder.
Photo 1, 2: Curry lures Mason Plumlee into the air with a head fake at the top of the key.
After thanking his family and his teammates, Curry compared this year’s 73-win team to last year’s championship squad, which beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals.
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General manager Bob Myers said that while he didn’t expect the vote for Curry to be unanimous, it was hard for him to envision an individual not picking the point guard.
