Stephen Curry was nominated to the All-NBA First Team but deserved MVP

Stephen Curry was named to the All-NBA First Team with Kawhi Leonard, Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo. It is Curry’s fourth time dubbed as a top-five player in the league, and he now has more All-NBA appearances (7) than anyone else in franchise history.

Curry and Doncic were the two guards awarded to the First Team. Damian Lillard, a top-tier guard often compared to Curry, was named to the Second Team along with Suns veteran guard Chris Paul.

After one of his best seasons yet, Stephen Curry was named to his fourth All-NBA First Team, but the star really deserved to be crowned MVP.

The two-time MVP Curry had arguably his most impactful season, absolutely dominating down the stretch in games that Golden State had to win to keep their postseason hopes alive. At times, it was a single-handed effort.

The Dubs were eventually gifted the No. 8 seed but were outed in the play-in tournament. Kelly Oubre Jr. and James Wiseman‘s injuries played a large part in their inability to take down either the Lakers or Grizzlies.

That shouldn’t have been put on Curry, and regardless of if it was or not, the fact remains that he didn’t earn his third MVP. It was the first time in Curry’s career that he finished top-three in MVP voting but didn’t win the award.

While there’s no denying that being on the First Team is extremely impressive, Curry was the best player in the NBA this past season. He was the only one to touch 32 points per game, taking down Bradley Beal for his second career scoring title.

He did that while shooting over 48 percent from the field and over 42 percent from three, making his scoring numbers that much more impressive. In his 11th season, he is still notching career-high numbers, knocking down 5.3 triples per game, the most of his career.

It’s tough to take away anything from what Jokic did. Claiming his first MVP, he put up 26.4 points, 10.8 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game. It was an insanely efficient year from the star big man, but to say he’s the most valuable player is a stretch.

Curry took a 15-win team and turned them into one that would typically make the playoffs. That’s the type of effort he showed throughout the season, and while it wasn’t enough to claim MVP, it won’t be something forgotten anytime soon.

First Team All-NBA is great, but Curry’s real goal was to get that MVP and help the Dubs contend. Sadly, neither were really accomplished this season.