The NBA Playoffs are starting to take shape. With the playoffs being just over a month away, teams are starting to fall into place in their respective conferences. Teams like the Jazz and 76ers have shocked many this year by being at the top of their conferences. 

Just as teams in the playoff hunt can change, so can names in the MVP race. Anybody can get jumped and be marked as the favorite at any given point. Players like Nikola Jokić, Joel Embiid, and Luka Dončić have been at the front of the race. Damian Lillard and Donovan Mitchell have also been under the radar for MVP.

But the man who should be the favorite right now is Warriors guard, Steph Curry. Now Curry is already a two-time MVP, but he is putting up crazy numbers right now.

Why Steph Curry will Win MVP: 

Stephen Curry has been the heart and soul of the Golden State Warriors for years now. As mentioned before he is already a two-time NBA MVP and three time NBA Champion. 

His presence is missed whenever he isn’t on the court. The Warriors are 28-23 when Curry plays, with a 1-7 record when Curry doesn’t play. That right there should show his value to the team.

What sets Curry apart from everyone else in the league is his shooting ability. Every little kid playing basketball now is trying to imitate his shooting ability from downtown. 

In the 2020/2021 NBA season, Curry is averaging 31.4 points per game, which is the highest average in the league. Now scoring isn’t everything, but it helped the Warriors beat top teams like the Denver Nuggets and Philadelphia 76ers. 

That 31.4 points per game is his season average. What everyone is talking about right now is Curry’s stretch over the last few games. In his last 11 games, he is averaging a massive 40 points per game with a 50% 3 point percentage and is shooting 54% from the field. He also has 78 three pointers made in that stretch (according to ESPN). 

He seems to be single handedly carrying this Warriors team. He doesn’t have his Splash Brother, Klay Thompson, as he is dealing with an injury. The Warriors are currently 29-30, losing their latest game to the Wizards. Curry only had 18 points in that game. 

Why Curry WON’T Win MVP:

The argument as to whether the MVP award should go to the best player on the best regular season team has been going on for ages now. The Bucks had the best regular season record last year and were led by Giannis Antetokounmpo, who won MVP last season. 

2017 was a season where this wasn’t the case. Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder took home the award despite not playing on the best team. This was also the season where Westbrook averaged a triple-double, so they had to give him MVP.

The Warriors are currently in 9th place in the Western Conference, and will probably be playing in the play-in tournament even if they jump up to the 8th spot. So with that clear knowledge, the Warriors aren’t the best team in the league, with many teams having superiority over them. 

If this logic were to continue, Joel Embiid would be the MVP this year. He is clearly the best player on the 76ers, averaging 30 points per game as well as 11 rebounds per game. Embiid has been a machine that nobody could stop or slow down, which is why he also has a good shot to win MVP. 

The Final Verdict: 

In all honesty, Curry should be the MVP. He said it himself and other fans would agree. You could argue that all he does is shoot, but his insane shooting ability gives the Warriors the boost they need. 

If it weren’t for Curry, the Warriors would arguably be the worst team in the West. They would definitely be a bottom-feeder team in that conference. And the fact that Curry is single handedly helping them make a push for the playoffs is crazy.

The Warriors will most likely be participating in the play-in tournament, where the teams in the seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth place spots in each conference will play each other for the final two playoff spots. 

If the season were to end right now, Curry and the Warriors would have to play the Memphis Grizzlies, and beat them twice where if the Grizzlies won, they would take the playoff spot since they are the eighth seed already.

So with this wild race for MVP coming to an end in the final stretch of the season, it will be a tightly contested race. Steph Curry should be considered for the award. The only reason he shouldn’t be is if in the wild scenario where his stats fall tremendously. This is Steph Curry we are talking about, so the chances of that happening are slim to none.