NBA-Warriors' Curry Named NBA Finals MVP
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player by a unanimous vote following the team's championship clinching 103-90 win over the Boston Celtics in Game Six on Thursday.
The Finals MVP award was one of the few major awards that had eluded the eight-time All Star, who has won two league MVPs and four championships.
"It means we won, it means we took advantage of the opportunity to get back here," Curry said, when asked how significant the award was to him.
"I hear all the conversations, I hear all the chatter, we hear all the chatter but at the end of the day it's about what we do on the floor. Ain't got to talk about it, just got to go do it. And that's what this is about."
Curry led all scorers with 31.2 points per game in the Finals, erupting in Game Four with 43 points and 10 rebounds in a crucial road win that leveled the series 2-2.
The 34-year-old's accuracy from beyond the arc has transformed the game and players at every position are now expected to be able to shoot - and guard against - three pointers.
Curry, who was selected by the Warriors with the seventh pick of the 2009 draft, also transformed a struggling franchise with help from fellow "Splash Brother" Klay Thompson and defensive force Draymond Green. The trio has now combined for four championships.
"We built this for 10, 11 years and that means a whole lot when you get to this stage because you know how to win," Curry said.
"Everybody who's a part of this knows what it's about. This one here's different. This one here's different for sure."
(Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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