2. Beats His Competition
The Warriors have beaten the Oklahoma City Thunder in three out of the four meetings this season. In those matchups, Curry played in all of them and Westbrook played in three. Here are their numbers in the three match-ups against one another:
- Curry: 24 points per game on 52.9% shooting, 6.3 rebounds, 7 assists, 3.3 steals, and 4 turnovers.
- Westbrook: 24 points per game on 32.8% shooting, 8.3 rebounds, 9.6 assists, 2.3 steals, and 3.6 turnovers.
Westbrook has taken 70 shots in the series compared to Curry’s 51. Curry has made four more field goals, regardless.
Curry has played in 71 games this season and has 221 turnovers and 618 missed shots. Westbrook has played in 58 games and has 255 turnovers and 709 missed shots. Curry’s team is first in the West while Westbrook’s is last in the playoff picture. It’s clear who the MVP is in this scenario.
James Harden has been Curry’s biggest rival all season in MVP terms. The Rockets have been campaigned hard for Harden to win this award whether it’s been via social media or talking to reporters.
Golden State swept the Houston Rockets in the regular season, winning all games comfortably. Curry was defended by one of the peskiest point guard defenders in the league in Patrick Beverley while Harden also had a difficult task against Klay Thompson. Here’s the MVP candidates’ numbers in the season series:
- Curry: 25.7 points per game on 57.8% shooting, 6.5 rebounds, 8.2 assists, 2 steals, and 4.2 turnovers.
- Harden: 25.2 points per game on 40.4% shooting, 5.5 rebounds, 5. Assists, 2.2 steals, and 3.7 turnovers.
Once again, despite putting up 20 more shots than Curry, Harden made three less field goals. Curry isn’t taking bad shots and hurting his team in that aspect. His turnover numbers have been higher than his opponents in their respective match-ups, but not as bad as them on the season.