There has been much conjecture on the NBA Most Valuable Player debate this season, with five players being more than worthy of winning the NBA’s most prestigious individual award.
James Harden, Russell Westbrook, LeBron James and Anthony Davis are all very much deserving contenders – but it is Stephen Curry that should win the award.
While Curry may not have the gaudy numbers that some of the other players have – he averages less points than all four of them and averaging less assists than LeBron and Westbrook – but he should still claim the award.
The reason for this is that Curry is not playing the amount of minutes that the other players are playing – when Curry is playing, it is at an historical clip, meaning he does not need to log such high minutes.
Curry is averaging 23.7 points, 7.8 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.1 steals in just 32.1 minutes. This is his lowest minutes total since 2012 and he is looking to become only the seventh player in NBA history to achieve the 50-40-90 season.
He is doing this while shooting a ridiculous 8 threes a game. He broke his own record for made three pointers in a season, besides playing far fewer minutes this season.
It is not just individually where Curry is excelling, he has carried his Golden State Warriors to a franchise record 64-15. They have a 36-2 home record, clinching the number one seed in the notoriously tough Western Conference.
The Warriors are a staggering 16 points better with Curry on the court, compared to when he sits on the bench.
Curry may be one of the most watchable players in NBA history. As soon as he gets hot, Twitter goes into meltdown with everyone raving about his ridiculous play or jumps on to league pass to watch him do his work.
The other four players also have reasons they should win the award. LeBron is doing what he does every year and has help Cleveland clinch the Central Division title with a team that had little to no chemistry at the start of the season.
Russell Westbrook has been extraordinary, with a league-leading 11 triple doubles and 10 coming after the All Star break as he has dragged his debilitated Thunder team towards the playoffs.
Anthony Davis is having one of the best seasons statistically of all time, with a Player Efficiency Rating of 30.78. The average for players is at 15, but with a struggling roster he is unlikely to get the recognition he deserves.
James Harden – who is seen to be Curry’s biggest danger – has also had a huge season, leading the league in scoring and dragging his Rockets to the second seed in the West despite Dwight Howard missing a huge chunk of games.
But this year’s MVP is Steph Curry, and really it’s not even close.
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