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Many have been critical of Andre Iguodala’s 2015 NBA Finals MVP win, claiming that the award should have gone to his superstar teammate Steph Curry instead. This comes as Iguodala won the award primarily for his defensive efforts against then-Cleveland Cavaliers superstar forward LeBron James.
Meanwhile, Curry still led the Golden State Warriors in scoring by almost 10 points per game. Curry then also failed to win the Finals MVP award in both the 2017 and 2018 Finals, before taking home his first such trophy in 2022.
However, according to Iguodala, Curry should have won a Finals MVP before 2022, whether it was his or not:
“I always say, ‘Yeah, I think Steph did deserve one before the one he got,’” Iguodala said during a recent appearance on "Gil’s Arena".
“I did think he deserved one. So, I always say, ‘If it was mine, cool.’”
Iguodala then said that he doesn’t need to have a Finals MVP to know the impact that he had throughout his 19-year career:
“I know the impact I had on the game.
“I don't need anybody to tell me that I did. Like, I’m cool with that because my whole career was based on that.”
He then spoke about how outside of his Finals MVP, he was underrated throughout the majority of his career, particularly when it came to defense-related accolades:
“I think I made one First Team All-Defensive team.
“My first one was in Golden State, the 13-14 season, like first time. The only reason I made the Olympic team in 2012 is because Kobe Bryant was like, ‘This is the best defender in the league.’ And I never made an All-Defensive First Team.”
Iguodala then reiterated that despite feeling that he should have made more All-Defensive teams, he would still be fine giving his Finals MVP to Curry:
“So, I say all of that to say, man, I don’t even care, Steph should have had mine.
“Like, I don’t really care, I think Steph should have had it.”
Iguodala averaged 16.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.3 3-pointers per game on 52.1% shooting over six games in the 2015 NBA Finals.
Meanwhile, Curry averaged 26.0 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 6.3 APG, 1.8 SPG and 4.2 3-points per game on 44.3% shooting in the same Finals series.
Also read: Andre Iguodala commends James Harden for promoting player empowerment
Andre Iguodala says other NBA players recognized his impact
Later on in his "Gil’s Arena" podcast appearance, Andre Iguodala added that other NBA players recognized his impact throughout his career, even if fans didn’t.
He named former Houston Rockets forward Trevor Ariza as one player who told him he was the Warriors’ X-Factor:
“But then, I’m talking to Trevor Ariza, and he was like, ‘Bro, you bugging. Like, don’t ever say that ever again'.
“Once Trevor said that to me, he kind of checked me, he was like, ‘Yo, dog, we were in Houston and we knew if you played well, you were gonna beat us.’ But the average fan who argues with all of our opinions every day, they don’t know what the best players in the world are saying.
“When Trevor said that he was like, ‘Dre, I’m in Houston and we can’t get past y’all cos of you.’ I’m like, ‘Man, Steph is cooking.’ He was like, ‘No, bro. If you’re having a good game, we can’t win.’”
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