By Mark Bacon
For the first time in the 61 years of balloting, every voter for the NBA MVP Award agreed on the winner, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry.
Curry led the league in scoring, averaging 30.1 points. He made 402 3-pointers, shattering his own previous NBA record set last season, and he did so while shooting 45.4 percent from beyond the 3 point line. He took 20.2 shots a game and made 50.4 percent of them.
Few have ever shot as well as Curry does (but don't forget Maravich...), and no one has ever dominated with such efficiency. Plus, he led the Warriors to 73 regular-season wins, the most in league history. He’s had some help with Draymond Green, in particular, Klay Thompson and the latest NBA thug, Steven Adams. Refs help, too; he does have the superstar cache now.
"I never really set out to change the game." Curry said. "I never thought that would happen. What I want to do is be myself."
Curry is the 11th player to win back-to-back MVP awards. The announcement came the morning after one of his best performances to date, a 40-point explosion against the Portland Trail Blazers in his return from a knee injury. In that game, Curry scored 17 points in the overtime period, a new NBA record.
But, he's not the only player who has deserved a unanimous MVP tally. Not in my mind.
NBA fans seen some truly dominant seasons that not only have those campaigns, but also set standards for that era and beyond. Michael Jordan is possibly the greatest player of all-time, and aside from a few opinions of dissension, that acceptance has left its mark on generations of NBA players. But Jordan never received 100 percent of the first-place votes for the league's MVP trophy.
He came close though, as have several other MVP winners. Here are the others who nearly took home every first-place vote:
• 1984-85 Larry Bird, Boston Celtics: Received 73 of 78 first-place votes
• 1985-86 Larry Bird, Boston Celtics: Received 73 of 78 first-place votes
• 1995-96 Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls: Received 109 of 113 first-place votes
• 1999-00 Shaquille O'Neal, Los Angeles Lakers: Received 120 of 121 first-place votes
• 2012-13 LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers: Received 120 of 121 first-place votes
Then, there’s been a drumbeat I can't ignore from many past NBA All Stars like Oscar Robertson, Walt Frazier and a others who claim it’s a “watered down NBA” via rule changes eliminating arm bars, hand checks and the physical play widely seen in the 1980s.
It has me wondering… how would Curry and the Warriors fare against Detroit’s vaunted Bad Boys? I personally think one drive in the lane by Curry would be his last, after Rodman or Lambeer sent their messages of “stay out, little man.” I really can’t shake that image. Or Frazier or Robertson’s stellar on the ball defense.
I think Curry is as good a shooter as I’ve seen… but a unanimous MVP pick? I disagree. Westbrook, Leonard and Durant had spectacular seasons, especially Russell. I’m on record as saying it all seems skewed to me. And I really dislike the “I’m back!!!!” showboat stuff. I'm not a hot dog fan.
I never recall The Big O, Kareem, Clyde, Earl The Pearl, Magic, Larry and many other greats engaging in such theatrics. Their overall game made all the statements required. I miss that. And wish Curry was more a student of NBA history. Maybe it's me?
I’ll close with a quote oft attributed to Black Jesus, Earl Monroe: “Don’t be the famous athlete who talks like a kid who’s been dropped on his head.” Or it may have been Earl's close friend Miles Davis who said that. Either way, it rings true, Steph. Jes' sayin'.
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