Stephen Curry has added one more award to his cabinet. However, the 2024 Clutch Player of the Year award has also raised some eyebrows due to a disastrous campaign from the Golden State Warriors. The inability of the 4x champion to ensure a playoff run for his franchise prompted a few NBA enthusiasts to question the credibility of the award. Amidst these doubts, Rachel Nichols defended this feat publicly, justifying the selection from her perspective.
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The controversy was spurred by Nichols’ latest post on X (formerly Twitter), displaying the voting results. Curry topped the charts with 298 points after receiving the most amount of 1st place votes (45) and third most of 2nd (18) and 3rd (19) place votes. It aided in him surpassing the likes of Nikola Jokic, DeMar DeRozan, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to clinch the second edition of this award.
Initially, Nichols’ post just aimed to highlight the initiative from the governing body in appreciating the difference makers as the 50-year-old stated, “Love that the NBA has added this award – clutch moments are what sports is all about.”
Love that the NBA has added this award – clutch moments are what sports is all about. pic.twitter.com/Cv9c3K7HC8
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) April 25, 2024
The underperformance of the Warriors roster had prompted the point guard to take over the games throughout the season. Those high-pressure scenarios only fueled his excellence as the Akron-born stepped up nearly every single time. As per NBA.com, the 10x All-Star led the league in points (189) during clutch moments, justifying his selection. Even then, some fans were not ready to buy the logic behind him clinching the award.
Rachel Nichols defends Stephen Curry on social media
Despite a proper breakdown of the results, some NBA fans remained in disbelief. They failed to wrap their heads around the Splash Brother winning this award over this season’s playoff stars. One such follower voiced his skepticism, mentioning, “If only they gave it to the most clutch player instead of the most popular player”.
If only they gave it to the most clutch player instead of the most popular player https://t.co/hHIkXfWq9K
— Adrian G (@AGissara) April 26, 2024
This statement drew the attention of Nichols as she quickly jumped in to defend Curry’s pride. With the statement,
“This is not homecoming king, nor was this a popularity contest,” she attempted to validate the selection.
In the process, the sportscaster even shed light on the 2x MVP’s regular season stats, supporting him following the win.
Um, this is not homecoming king, nor was this a popularity contest. In what the NBA defines as “clutch” (score within five points in the final five minutes of a game), Curry led the league in points, 3-pointers and field goals made, on absolutely insane 50/47/95 shooting splits. https://t.co/fqJc0Mng09
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) April 26, 2024
Her words justified the results while capturing the impact of Curry in the pivotal phases of the game. Yet, the doubts in the minds of the handful of followers remained valid too. Despite the data supporting the selection, the fans chose to form their opinions purely based on postseason circumstances.
They refused to believe that a player so clutch would miss out on the playoffs, leading them to question the nomination. This has paved the way for interesting debates, with the pressure piling on Curry to back the stats with outcomes in the coming seasons.
