NBA MVP Betting: Stephen Curry Eyes a Hat Trick

The modern dynasty of the Golden State Warriors is noticeably waning in its twilight.

Regardless, the fact that Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are still playing ball in the Bay Area, they are likely living by the quote of Oakland native and active NFL cornerback Marcus Peters.

"I think we ain't done yet."

Curry is entering a season where he will turn 36 years old before its conclusion. Transparently, he would be the most senior player to ever win the NBA MVP Award, as Karl Malone (1998-99) at age 35 currently holds that accolade. But with the way Curry is moving, I certainly cannot rule it out.

At FanDuel Sportsbook, Curry is listed at +1400 on the 2023-24 NBA MVP odds board. He played in only 56 regular season games a year ago, which will obviously need to increase, but he still averaged 29.4 points, 6.3 assists and 6.1 rebounds per game over that stretch. Simply, when healthy, the four-time world champion is still an icon of the league and the face of Northern California sports (unless the San Francisco 49ers go on to win Super Bowl LVIII this season).

With the Western Conference again projected to be fiercely competitive in the upcoming campaign, Chef Curry and the Dubs will have their work cut out for them. Let's glance through Curry's MVP chances, some of his best attributes and his current playing situation -- along with what sort of effort it might take for Steph to reclaim the award.

It's worth mentioning that just eight players have accumulated three (or more) NBA MVPs: Kareem Adbul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Wilt Chamberlain, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Moses Malone -- talk about a who's who of basketball royalty.

All NBA odds via FanDuel Sportsbook.

A Fresh Outlook

It took a while for the Warriors to get their core roster healthy again, but that finally started to occur by last year's playoffs. After two stressful postseason series against the in-state rival Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers, there is some silver lining to Golden State's recent early exit -- fresh legs for the coming year.

Remember: at an average age of 28.8 years old, the Warriors are the oldest team in the NBA. Additionally, guys like Curry, Thompson, Green and Kevon Looney have logged some serious minutes through the recent era. For 2022-23, their season came to a close in early May. That gives Curry -- who totaled 69 contests last year (including postseason) -- and company slightly more than five months of rest. Imagine the possibilities.

Last July, Golden State notably traded away 2019 first-round selection Jordan Poole. Of course, that landed future Hall-of-Fame point guard Chris Paul (more on that below). However, with Poole -- a streaky 20.4 point-per-game scorer last year -- now a member of the Washington Wizards, perhaps Curry gets his own scoring clip back above 30 (something he has not done since 2020-21).

On numberFire, Curry is rated (10.4 nERD) as the 12th-best active player in the league. At FanDuel Sportsbook, the Warriors' current odds to win the NBA Finals are priced at +1700 (sixth-shortest).

Keep Your Friends Close, But Keep Your Enemies Closer

Naturally, there is an elephant in Golden State's room, and that is the aforementioned 12-time All-Star: Chris Paul. Once a heated adversary of Curry, Green and the Warriors, Paul joins the Dubs in his 19th NBA season. What exactly will that do to the offense?

Curry is not the ball-dominant guard that Paul is -- Draymond plays that role for the Dubs. Either way, head coach Steve Kerr will be tasked with inserting Paul into an already potent offense. Golden State averaged the second-highest scoring production in 2022-23 at 118.9 points per game.

As the top two point guards of the recent generation, Curry and Paul should be able to sharpen one another's skills. Additionally, Curry will be able to further thrive off-ball, as his conditioning makes him one of the toughest covers in the NBA.

What will we see from fellow Splash Brother Klay? Thompson shot 41.2% from three last season, which is actually down a bit from his excellent standard (lifetime 41.6%). Still, he is now two seasons removed from any major injuries. If Thompson can fire on all cylinders, that could leave Curry in a spot to eat like his previous MVP days.

How Does Curry Return To MVP Form?

Curry won his initial league MVP award in 2015 behind a scoring clip of just 23.8 points per game, yet he averaged a second-personal best of 7.7 assists per night that year. The following season, Curry's nightly point production ramped up to 30.1 -- powered by a scorching 45.4% conversion rate (on 886 three-point attempts) from behind the arc.

Also, in both of Curry's MVP campaigns, he was active on the defensive end. Curry managed at least 2.0 steals per game in each of those seasons -- something he has yet to accomplish since.

As a team, the Warriors notched 67 and an NBA-record 73 wins in years Curry was named league MVP. Golden State will likely need to be one of the NBA's elite to keep their franchise player amongst the leaders in this market. For reference, the Dubs have not won more than 55 games in a season since 2019.

The NBA is currently in the midst of an intriguing trend. The league MVP has gone to an internationally-born player in five-consecutive seasons. Joel Embiid (Cameroon) of the Philadelphia 76ers was last year's winner while Nikola Jokic (Serbia) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece) accounted for the four prior MVPs. Shockingly, James Harden was the most recent American to earn the honors (2018). Curry has a chance to break the streak if he clicks with CP3 and the Warriors post one of the NBA's top records.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author’s advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.