Getty Steph Curry dribbles past Nikola Jokic in a 2019 game.
Golden State Warriors star Steph Curry has the endorsement of LeBron James for this year’s MVP race, but it may not be enough to help where it matters the most — the actual voters.
Though Curry turned in one of the best seasons of his career, even topping the scoring total from his unanimous MVP season, the Warriors guard may fall far short of the honor in this season. Reports indicate that a Western Conference rival is instead running away with the race.
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Curry Headed for a Shutout
A panel of experts broke down the league honors for CBS Sports, with all eight predicting that Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic would win MVP this year. Among the group, only one — James Herbert — had Curry finishing higher than third in the race. Herbert picked Curry as runner-up, while fellow insiders Sam Quinn and Brad Botkin had Curry finishing third. All others had him in fourth, behind Sixers big man Joel Embiid and Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Herbert wrote for CBS Sports that he had a difficult time picking between Curry and Jokic, especially with the Warriors star averaging 32 points per game on incredible .482/.421/.916 splits. The resume looked even stronger in context of the challenges that the Warriors faced, with a young roster and no Klay Thompson to help lessen the load.
“This might have been the most impressive regular season of Curry’s career,” he wrote. “He saw even crazier defensive coverages than he did in 2015 and 2016, a natural byproduct of playing with inferior scorers, screeners, passers and floor spacers, and yet he was able to lift the Golden State Warriors to relatively great heights when they weren’t trying to integrate a 20-year-old big.”
Botkin noted that even though the Los Angeles Lakers star said Curry should be MVP, he didn’t agree when it came time to cast his ballot.
After the Los Angeles Lakers’ 2020-21 regular-season finale on Sunday, LeBron James stated that Stephen Curry, in his opinion, should be this season’s MVP. Curry has a case. I voted him third. But he’s not going to win. That trophy already has Nikola Jokic’s name engraved. Or it should, at least.
Many other voters seem to agree. A Twitter user named SwipaCam has been compiling the votes that have already been cast by sportswriters, and it’s pointing toward a unanimous vote for Jokic.
MVP Tracker: 25 1st place votes for Nikola Jokic so far. He is the only one with any 1st place votes. Even Brian Windhorst has him in 1st place. We are moving closer to a unanimous MVP.
Curry Still Has Strong Endorsements
Though the MVP race seems to be a foregone conclusion, Curry has earned plenty of praise from many around the league. After the endorsement from James, fellow Laker Kyle Kuzma seemed to concur. In speaking to reporters on Tuesday, he said that his team was preparing to play the potential MVP in the league’s new play-in tournament.
If the Lakers had media votes, the MVP vote would seem to going to Steph Curry. Kyle Kuzma: “We’re playing who potentially could be the MVP of the season.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr also had some big praise for his star guard, saying that Curry is at his career peak. Kerr said this season was even more impressive given that Curry had such a young team around him.
Steph Curry 2020-21 season:
— 32.0 PPG (leads NBA)
— Oldest to win scoring title since MJ
— 38 30-point games (most since MJ)
— 337 threes (leads NBA)
— 4th 300-three season (most ever)
— 7 10-three games (most ever)
— 5.3 3PG (most ever)
— Broke Warriors all-time scoring record
“He’s never been better, I can say that,” Kerr said when asked if this was the best season of Curry’s career, via ESPN. “He’s been great for a long time, though, so it’s hard to say he’s at his best now because he’s been like this for years.”
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