The Golden State Warriors punched their ticket back to the NBA Finals on Thursday, eliminating the Mavericks with a Game 5 victory. With the conference title locked up, Warriors star Stephen Curry became the first ever winner of the Magic Johnson Western Conference Finals MVP. Ironically, it becomes the first Finals MVP award of Curry’s career.
In the Warriors' 4-1 series victory over Dallas, Curry led the team with 23.8 points and 7.4 assists per game, alongside 6.6 rebounds per game. Curry was far from the dominant force in the Western Conference Finals that he has been in the past.