In a recent segment of his show, NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith gave his candid take on the 2024 Olympic basketball MVP. LeBron James won the award, but Smith believes that Curry should have been given the honor instead.
“You saw LeBron and you saw Kein Durant and everybody deferring to Steph because when you get hot like that, you know who to give the damn ball to. I thought Steph Curry deserved the MVP because of that. Not because LeBron wasn’t great because he was. But when you steal pivotal moments like that to secure gold in two thrillers, Serbia and then France, you deserve the MVP.”
Team USA secured the gold this summer after their win over France. They went undefeated in all of the games and entered the knockout round with a whopping plus-64-point differential. Besides LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant, the roster included stars such as Anthony Edwards, Joel Embiid, Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, and Bam Adebayo.
For Steph, this was his first and last Olympic Games but he made sure to make it count. The 10x All-Star came up big for the Americans and even made a case to win the MVP over LeBron James in the final games.
Curry didn’t start off strong in the exhibition matches and he actually looked sluggish out of the gate. But as Team USA progressed in the bracket, Curry got hot and took over the entire event with his shooting. Against Serbia in the Semifinals, Curry dropped a team-high 36 points before finishing with 24 in the gold medal game against France. Through all six tournament games, Curry averaged 14.8 points as the primary perimeter scoring threat.
Of course, his heroics in the last two games were key in helping deliver gold to the USA and his leadership in the locker room helped bring out the best in all of his teammates. In the end, however, it was LeBron James who won the MVP.
James, at 39, deserved to be recognized for his impact on the court. He averaged 14.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 8.5 assists, and 1.3 steals per game in the tournament and was a steady hand throughout the games. LeBron was voted the best player on the team by his fellow Americans and his leadership in the clutch saved them from multiple potential losses.
In the end, a case could be made for multiple people to win the MVP but LeBron James was the one who was chosen and you can’t say he didn’t earn it. As a 2x MVP winner himself, Stephen Curry already knows the feeling and he’s already got enough validation.
Now that the mission to win gold can be called a success, Steph is content with the experience and his focus will re-shift to helping the Warriors get back to the top of the standings. After finishing 10th last season, and losing in the play-in, Curry will have his work cut out for him to make the Warriors a contender — but he seems more than ready for the challenge.
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