Some people love surprises while others hate it. From his fun style of play, Stephen Curry seems to be the type of person that would enjoy a good surprise. However, a bad surprise would disappoint him which is exactly what his former coach Mark Jackson did.
Jackson doesn't have a vote in the MVP race but when he was on the Dan Patrick Show, he told the host that if he had to choose, he would pick James Harden. Not Curry, the former player that went to bat for him numerous times. Curry even spoke glowingly about Jackson after he was fired.
Jackson's comments:
"It'd be awfully tough. I think there's four guys in the discussion in LeBron [James], [Russell] Westbrook, Curry and Harden. If you twisted my arm today, I would probably vote for James Harden. The reason why is because he singlehandedly has put that Houston Rockets team in the position that they're in today."
"It'd be tough. I think Steph Curry, I'm totally fine with obviously. He's my guy. I'm fine with selecting him. The season that he's had has been incredible. Westbrook, with 10 triple-doubles and carrying that team, injury-prone, into the playoffs. LeBron, being the best player in the world. But I think right now I would go with James Harden because of what he's done, and he's stepped up his game defensively. He's not a great defender, but he's competing on the defensive end."
Jackson calling Curry his "guy" is a nice sentiment but it doesn't have the same type of meaning as supporting his former player's MVP candidacy. Plus, "my guy" is such a loose term that too often gets thrown around these days. This is probably why Andrew Bogut happily threw some shade in Jackson's direction last night. Bogut was not a fan of Jackson and now Curry may not be one as well.
From ESPN's Ethan Strauss:
"It's his opinion obviously," Curry said. "He's probably been watching the league. People are going to ask what he thinks, especially his ties to the Warriors organization and myself specifically. Surprised me he said that. But, it is what it is."
Curry had been vocally supportive of Jackson prior to the coach's dismissal last offseason, something the Warriors point guard made mention of Friday.
"Obviously I wasn't shy about trying to defend him last year when things were rumbling outside of our locker room," Curry said. "But for him to ... it's kind of a different situation, but it is surprising that he didn't."
When asked if his former coach's endorsement hurt his feelings Curry responded, "It was surprising. It didn't really hurt my feelings because it's not like he was actually casting a vote officially, but it was just very surprising."
Curry is right, Jackson is just doing his job by answering the question as a basketball analyst and he doesn't have an actual vote. You can't fault Jackson for that but it is still a surprising statement, especially since he has previously been so supportive of Curry.
Jackson did backtrack on his statement with this tweet:
The question is not who do I Want to win the MVP!! 4 guys deserve strong consideration! #NoWrongAnswer
— Mark Jackson (@MarkJackson13) April 2, 2015This is a very tight MVP race as CBSSports.com's Matt Moore will tell you. Curry may be the current front-runner for the award but Harden is right there with him. Ever little bit will help Curry's narrative to win the award.
Even a former coach going to bat for him.
