The monkey is finally off his back. Steph Curry has, after six attempts, at last won the Bill Russel Finals MVP award. And it was more than well deserved.
Posting 43 points in a critical Game 4, then another 34 points in the series clinching Game 6 victory, Steph Curry can finally silence all critics who say he has had “poor performance” in past NBA finals. Tonight’s victory shows that the heart of the Warriors’ dynasty was Steph Curry all along. This team should have been finished after their finals loss to Toronto, when the injuries to Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Kevin Durant began piling up as they aged.
And not only that, when KD left to join Brooklyn in 2019/20 season, Klay was out for two years to recover from a torn achilles and only came back to play this season, and when 2nd overall pick James Wiseman suffered a torn meniscuses early on this season, that should have further cemented this dynasty as a thing of the past. Nobody could have blamed the Warriors management and players if they just gave up hope of another title run and rebuilt.
But giving up is not what champions do, and it was not in the minds of the Warriors either. After the Wiseman injury, this team, led by Steph, Klay, and Draymond Green, went on a tear in the Western Conference to finish 3rd overall, making it back to the playoffs after two years out. And in the playoffs, they were able to overcome all that was thrown at them by the Nuggets, Grizzlies, Mavericks, and now the Celtics.
Steph Curry carried the Warriors through the first four games of the series, averaging 31.2 PPG. And, after a poor display in Game 5, Steph rose to the moment in Game 6 to defeat the Celtics in their own house. He is well deserving of the Finals MVP that has long eluded him.
But in this final game, Steph Curry was not the only one to come up large. Draymond Green also played fantastic in Game 6, putting up 12pts, 8 assists, and 12 rebounds to silence his critics again (me included). Andrew Wiggins followed up the game of his life in Game 5 with another great game, scoring 18pts and getting 6 rebounds. Jordan Poole, another player that has been criticized, put up 15pts coming off the bench. And Klay Thompson also had an okay game with 12pts.
The point is, every member of the Warriors showed up when it really mattered, though none more so than Steph Curry. This finals was his finals to prove that he is the heart of the Warriors dynasty. And that was what he did. He proved that he is one of the greatest point guards of this generation. No, rather, he proved that he is one of the best point guards of all-time.
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