If the Warriors hope to return to the NBA title fight during the 2020-21 NBA season, they will need Steph Curry to play at the MVP level.
With Kevin Durant gone and Klay Thompson expecting to miss a second straight season due to injury, all offensive attention for the Warriors will be on Curry. After all, he is the system and this will not be more obvious than this season, which starts on Tuesday.
But can Curry win his third MVP, five seasons after winning his last? ESPN color commentator Jeff Van Gundy believes this.
“You know who I think has an outside shot and I didn’t mention it yesterday when I was talking about the MVP, it’s Steph Curry,” Van Gundy said Friday night during the pre-season game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns. “Steph Curry, due to their injuries, will have the opportunity to gather a large number. Now, I’m not sure Golden State is good enough to earn enough for him to participate in that conversation, but I think Steph Curry is coming back with an incredible year. “
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If the three pre-season games of the Warriors are any indication, Curry will be a very useful player this season. After a 10-point performance against the Denver Nuggets in his first game of nine months, Curry gave up 29-point efforts against the Sacramento Kings.
In these two games, Curry took 26 of 3 combined points and made 11 of them. With Thompson out, it’s safe to assume that Curry will bomb long range. If he averaged 15 3-point attempts per game, Curry could put up obscene stats and even lead the NBA in the score.
But leading the league in score does not guarantee that a player will win the MVP. Ask Houston Rockets star James Harden, who led the league with nearly four full points last season, but received no first-place MVP vote.
Van Gundy is right. The warriors must win for him to receive any consideration for the MVP. But if Golden State returns to the top of the NBA, it will be largely because of Curry. This would naturally generate the MVP buzz for him, no matter what numbers he puts.
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As much as Curry would like to win a third NBA MVP, he would prefer to have a fourth NBA championship.
Any of these achievements this season would silence those who doubt him and Curry’s detractors.