How Steph joined Pistol Pete in NBA history this season originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
In the world of non-stop comparisons, Steph Curry still finds himself in a category of one.
There’s no other Steph Curry. There never has been, and there never will be. But the closest comparison might be that of Pete Maravich.
Both Curry and Maravich were far ahead of their time, wizards with the ball in their hands and sharpshooters from distances unimaginable. It’s no surprise then that Curry matched Maravich in NBA history this season.
With the Warriors falling to the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night in the NBA play-in tournament, Curry became the first player to be a MVP finalist and fail to make the playoffs since Maravich did so in the 1976-77 season.
Pistol Pete finished third in MVP voting that season after leading the NBA in points per game (31.1) and minutes per game (41.7). He also averaged 5.4 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game that season. But his New Orleans Jazz went just 35-47, finishing fifth in the NBA Central Division.
Curry’s stats this season were eerily similar to Maravich’s. He also won the scoring title, averaging 32.0 points per game. Curry averaging slightly more assists and rebounds, finishing with 5.8 assists and a career-high 5.5 rebounds per game.
The Warriors finished the regular season 39-33 before losing to both the Los Angeles Lakers and Grizzlies in the play-in tournament.
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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won the MVP when Maravich came up short. Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid are the other two finalists with Curry this season. But Curry is expected to be finish second or third behind the two centers who play for teams with much better records than the Warriors.
Steph Curry and Pistol Pete. The two were bound be together in the record books one way or another.