Stephen Curry rises in NBA MVP race during historic streak

Update: April 22 — So the Warriors struggled to contain the, Washington Wizards ... and Curry had his worst game in a while on Wednesday night. The now MVP hopeful shot 7-of-25 from the floor and 2-of-14 from beyond the arc for just 18 points in the 118-114 loss. When the difference between a win and a loss is Steph making two extra shots, you’ve got to be kicking yourself after. Does this put an end to Curry’s MVP chances? Not quite yet. It certainly didn’t help things considering the Wizards were an easy team to feast on.

Update, April 20 — DKSB has released the updated MVP odds and Curry is now 30/1 to win the award after starting last night at 100/1. Nikola Jokic moved to -400, however, after a 47-point triple-double in a 2OT win over the Grizz. Curry is still a huge underdog to even sniff Jokic in this race, but that move is pretty notable. Curry has a lot working in his favor if he continues like this the rest of the season. That’s what it would likely take: Steph averaging 40 points on historic shooting splits for another month or so. Update: Curry has moved to 20/1 in line with Giannis to win NBA MVP. He jumped James Harden with that news the Nets star is out indefinitely.

It’s time to talk about Stephen Curry. The Golden State Warriors superstar is amid a ridiculous scoring run while attempting to drag his team into playoff contention and took the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers to the wire on Monday by scoring 49 points in a win. That performance was enough to convince oddsmakers to give Steph Boyardee more respect, and his MVP odds got a major bump after the final buzzer.

Curry’s MVP odds were +10000 on DraftKings Sportsbook before Monday’s game against the Sixers but jumped to +6000 after he powered his team to an impressive win. The Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic (-335) seems like a shoo-in to take home the hardware at -335, but Curry is the best longshot on the board worth considering. Now, the MVP odd are currently down on DKSB as a result of Steph.

Curry is competing with Bradley Beal for the scoring title and has scored more than 30 points in 11 straight games. Seven other players in NBA history have accomplished that feat in the last 40 seasons. Is there anything else Curry can do to plead his case? It’s hard to be more impressive than he has been.

Curry is widely accepted as the greatest shooter ever to touch a basketball, but most people don’t understand how elite he really is. Curry revolutionized basketball by making threes from the parking lot with unreal efficiency and entered Monday knocking down a career-high 5.1 threes per contest on a career-high 12 attempts per game while converting at a 42.7% clip. Curry scores almost half his points from beyond the arc but has a 66.3 TS%. That mark is good for ninth in the NBA this season, and seven of the other players in the top 10 are centers. Curry’s 2020-21 season has catapulted him into third all-time in TS%. Only DeAndre Jordan and Cedric Maxwell can best his mark of 62.6%.

Here’s another insane stat thanks to Raymond Ridder on Twitter, the Sr. VP of Communications for the Dubs. Steph is the first non-center in NBA history to average 40 points while shooting 54% from the floor over an 11-game stretch. The other two players? Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain.

One thing is for certain. The Warriors will have to make the playoffs for Curry to have a legitimate MVP case in the eyes of voters. They currently rank ninth in the Western Conference with a 29-29 record and seem to be headed for the play-in tournament. Unfortunately, his fate likely lies with his teammates. If Draymond Green decides to shoot more than half a shot a game, Andrew Wiggins is somewhat aggressive, and Kelly Oubre makes shots aside from dunks while Curry makes scoring 40 look as easy as pop-a-shot, Curry has a chance to make things interesting. If not, this year’s MVP is as good as Jokic’s.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL).Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ/WV/PA/MI), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (NH/CO), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), 1-888-532-3500 (VA) or call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN).21+ (18+ NH). CO/IL/IN/IA/NH/NJ/PA/TN/VA/WV/MI only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.