King James Gospel
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LeBron James Finishes 3rd In MVP Vote; Curry Unanimous

By Jared Mueller

December 25, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30, left) dribbles the basketball against Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) in the fourth quarter of a NBA basketball game on Christmas at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Cavaliers 89-83. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
December 25, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30, left) dribbles the basketball against Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) in the fourth quarter of a NBA basketball game on Christmas at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Cavaliers 89-83. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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LeBron James had a very good season but it was only good enough for 3rd Place in the MVP voting.

Not surprisingly, Stephen Curry won the MVP vote. He had an incredible season on a team that won the most games in NBA history. A well deserved honor.

What is a little shocking, in a couple of ways, is that Curry was the first unanimous winner in the history of the award.

Here is how the voting broke down:

Third place is a fine finish for LBJ after a very good season where his team seemed to struggled playing together, his head coach got fired and he subtweeted many, many people.

On the year, James had very good numbers: 25.3 points, 6.8 assists and 7.4 rebounds per game. His 27.64 PER was his usually impressive number.

For his part, Curry put up outrageous numbers as well: 30.1 points, 6.7 assists and 5.4 rebounds per game with an other-worldly 31.56 PER. Kawhi Leonard had 21.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists and a 26.11 PER.

Leonard and James were only 3 points apart for 2nd place but neither stood a chance this year. Curry got every first place vote, which has never happened. While his season was impressive, with Leonard, James and Russell Westbrook all playing great, it is still a shock for Curry to get all the votes.

How did Michael Jordan never win unanimously? What about LeBron himself who has had some of the greatest seasons ever put together?

In 2012-13, LeBron was 1 vote shy of getting all the vote. In 2009-10, LBJ was 6 votes short.

In 2013, Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe was the one who didn’t vote for James, instead giving his vote to Carmelo Anthony. He explained it this way:

"So my vote had more to do with Anthony and less to do with the dominance of LeBron. If you were to take Anthony off the Knicks, they are a lottery team. James plays with two other All-Stars, the league’s all-time 3-point leader, a defensive stalwart, and a fearless point guard. The Heat are loaded.If LeBron was taken away from the Heat, they still would be a fifth or sixth seed. He is the best player of this generation, a multifaceted superstar with the physical prowess of Adonis, but I chose to reward a player who has lifted his team to new heights."

Random logic, you can read the rest of it at the link above, that kept LeBron from being the first. Washburn noted that he didn’t think he would be the only one not to vote for James, nor did he know what other writers would do.

None the less, Washburn’s vote kept things up for the new NBA darling to capture yet another “record.”

Not Magic Johnson.

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Not Michael Jordan.

Not Shaquille O’Neal.

Not Kobe Bryant.

Not LeBron James.

Nope, Stephen Curry is the first unanimous winner.

At this point, LeBron James should hardly care about individual awards. His goals are team and city oriented. Finishing 3rd, or even 4th, this season is not a problem at all. Curry, Leonard and Westbrook all had very good seasons, along with James.

That none of them, like Washburn did (and expected other writers to do), didn’t get 1st place votes is a little surprising.

Do you think LeBron James deserved 3rd Place? Do you think he uses this as fuel?