It is now 8 years since Steph Curry won the 2016 NBA MVP award unanimously and fans are still unable to get their heads around this fact. To the few who might not know, Curry is the franchise star for the Golden State Warriors and is regarded as the greatest shooter in the history of the NBA.
While Steph is still playing at a high level and is arguably one of the top players in the league today, his impact and abilities in his prime were on a level that modern-day fans may not be able to comprehend well. Since it has almost been a decade since Curry made history by winning the MVP award, a closer look at one of the best accomplishments of his career is required.
Steph Curry had a historic season in 2016 that still stuns fans
Some fans might be aware that the winner of the MVP award every season occurs through a process of voting by prominent sportswriters, media, and other panel members and broadcasters. Since each of them is free to vote for whichever player they think deserves the award the most, it was never heard of for a single player to receive all the first-place votes.
That was before Steph Curry’s 2015-2016 NBA season. He completely dominated the league that season, averaging 30.1 points, 6.7 assists and 5.4 rebounds. Moreover, his three-point shooting abilities reached another level in 2016 considering that he made 402 three-pointers in a single season. This is a record that no other player has come close to beating.
8 YEARS AGO TODAY
Steph Curry became the 1st unanimous MVP & 11th back-to-back MVP30.1 PTS, 6.7 AST, 5.4 REB, 2.1 STL
NBA Record 402 3PTS pic.twitter.com/Ms9bEF9vwD— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) May 10, 2024
As a result of his elite play that year, Steph was given every single first-place vote for the MVP award and won it unanimously. This was something that had never occurred in the past and is not expected to happen in the future. Some fans are still unable to swallow this fact, love him down, “but Unanimous MVP is CRAZY.”
love him down, but Unanimous MVP is CRAZY
— Juels (@julianpatrickR) May 10, 2024
— 👽❓ (@AceKingDeathX) May 10, 2024
While Steph did have an incredible regular season and managed to make his mark on the history of this league, it did not come to an end in the way he had hoped.
Steph’s MVP season was dampened by an NBA Finals loss
Led by Steph Curry, the Golden State Warriors finished the 2015-2016 NBA season with a record of 73 wins and 9 losses. This was and continues to remain the best record that a team has managed to hold in an 82-game-long regular season. Although the Warriors made it all the way to the NBA Finals that season, they ended up losing to LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Despite the fact that the Warriors had a 3-1 lead in the series and were on the verge of winning their second title in a row, they lost 3 straight games and ended up falling short of the ultimate goal. If they had managed to win that year, Steph would have won the regular season MVP and Finals MVP in the same season.