He Outscored His Teammate By 40 Points And Still Lost MVP: Jalen Brunson’s Award Shows the TRUTH

Alright, folks, can we talk about what just happened? Jalen Brunson absolutely crushed it, no doubt. The guy was named 2026 Finals MVP, totally deserved it, especially after dropping a massive 45 points in that closeout game against the Spurs on Saturday. He was clutch as heck throughout the whole series, the undeniable best player on the floor. But here’s the kicker, the real eye-opener, the thing nobody is talking about enough: Brunson’s unanimous MVP just blew the lid off the total hypocrisy of Finals MVP voters, and it screams that Stephen Curry got absolutely robbed back in 2015.

The Stats Don’t Lie: Curry Was Underrated

You wanna talk about double standards? Brunson was “wildly inefficient” for the first three games of the Finals, yet the media gave him a pass. A pass that Steph Curry, the actual 2014-15 MVP, never got 11 years ago. Let’s break down the numbers from both series, because they are wild. Look at Brunson’s 2026 Finals run: 32.6 points per game, a .536 true shooting percentage, a +8 plus/minus, and 11.2 points in the fourth quarter. His teammate, OG Anunoby, put up 21.2 PPG, a .714 TS%, a -17 plus/minus, and 7 fourth-quarter points.

Now, rewind to 2015 and Curry’s “snub” for Andre Iguodala. Curry’s numbers: 26.0 PPG, a .585 TS%, an insane +52 plus/minus, and 10.8 fourth-quarter points. Iguodala had 16.3 PPG, a .588 TS%, a +62 plus/minus, and 5.7 fourth-quarter points. Think about this: Curry was objectively more efficient than Brunson. And Anunoby was actually way more efficient than Iguodala. The defensive gap between Iguodala and Curry, which was a big reason for the 2015 vote, was actually similar to the gap between Brunson and Anunoby. Plus, for anyone screaming 𠇌lutch,” Curry’s fourth-quarter scoring was almost IDENTICAL to Brunson’s. And here’s the kicker from history: in the entire NBA, every single time a winning team’s leading scorer outscored their second-leading scorer by 40 points or more over a series, that leading scorer won Finals MVP. Every time. Except Curry in 2015.

Perception Is Everything, And It’s Still Wild

So, why did Curry get shafted and Brunson get what he deserved? It came down to two major things: how these star guards were seen as offensive engines soaking up wild defensive attention, and how they were perceived after just three games. Back in 2015, Curry didn’t get nearly enough credit for driving his team’s offense. The Cavaliers hounded him, denying him airspace even 40 feet from the basket, often leaving other Warriors, like Iguodala, wide open. Brunson definitely got more defensive attention than any other Knick, and that fueled their offense, with much of Anunoby’s scoring being a direct result of Brunson’s playmaking. But it wasn’t the same suffocating pressure Curry faced.

The perception after three games is even crazier. When the Warriors fell behind 2-1 in 2015, the narrative was that Curry was “getting locked up” by Matthew Dellavedova, and the team needed someone to “save” their reigning MVP. That narrative, despite the numbers, stuck. With Brunson, his early inefficiency was quickly forgotten because of his stellar closeout. It really makes you wonder how we evaluate greatness in the moment. This whole thing makes you question every single award vote, doesn’t it? We need to give players their flowers when they earn them, and not let old narratives dictate who gets the hardware. It’s a tough lesson, but Brunson’s MVP just brought it all back to the surface.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.