Is Tracy McGrady correct on his ‘watered-down’ synopsis of the NBA?

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May 10, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry speaks after receiving the 2015-2016 NBA Most Valuable Player trophy at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

With great success comes critique and ‘hateration‘. Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors felt that animosity coming into this season after winning a championship last season. Many people discredited the Warriors for taking advantage of the injury infested teams in front of them and many NBA retirees took shots at Curry, downplaying his greatness on the court. And here we are again, with yet another former NBA player stuck with that ‘get off my lawn’ mentality.

After Steph Curry was announced as the 1st NBA player in history to unanimously win the League MVP award, Tracy McGrady voiced his opinion on how the unanimous decision shows the league is “watered-down”.

“For him to be that first player to get this unanimously, I think it just tells you how watered-down our league is.

Think about when MJ Played, Shaq. I mean, those guys really played against top notch competition. More superstars, I think, on more teams than it is in our league today.

But it’s well-deserved, because he had a hell of a season – breaking records. He’s re-writing the record book.”

I’m unsure how Curry winning unanimously leads to this type of thinking but I believe McGrady is wrong in this statement. When you sit back and look at the season he had along with the Warriors, all the success is warranted. Steph Curry’s game vastly improved from the MVP season he had last year, so much that he was considered for the Most Improved Player of the Year as well. He dominated the league for yet another season and did it efficiently. Curry averaged 30.1 points per game and became the first player to hit 300 and 400 threes in a season while joining the 50/45/90 club.

I’m sure Steph has gotten used to all the criticism and backlash at this point as it’s probably just fuel to the fire but the guys that shouldn’t be too pleased with McGrady’s statements are Steph Curry’s peers. To say we lack superstars in a “watered-down” league when there are guys by the names of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and many more is a bit blasphemous to me. There were other guys in the NBA who had tremendous seasons but the only problem was that Curry’s season was much better. He transcended all of his peers throughout the season but that doesn’t take away from the great year that other players had as well. Tracy’s statement takes away from Steph’s performance while also bringing down the rest of the players in the league. A unanimous MVP hasn’t happened before but it was damn near close to happening a couple of times. Shaquille O’Neal and LeBron James were both one vote away from unanimously winning MVP awards which goes to show that it really has nothing to do with the lack of talent that surrounds the NBA. When you assert dominance and elevate yourself above your companions within your field then you truly deserve all the credit that you receive.

 

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