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Today in Sports History: April 13

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CLEVELAND, OH - JUNE 8: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors is seen during the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers during Game Three of the 2016 NBA Finals on June 8, 2016 at The Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)

On April 13, 2016, Stephen Curry led the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors to their record-breaking 73rd win of the 2015-16 regular season, as they blew out the Memphis Grizzlies, 125-104. Curry finished the game with 46 points, shooting 15/24 from the field, and 10/19 from three-point range. His eighth three-pointer of the evening marked Curry’s 400th of the season. This cemented Curry as the first and only player ever to knock down 400 + three-pointers in a single NBA regular season. Curry won his second consecutive league MVP award in 2015-16, while becoming the first-ever unanimous MVP. He led the league in scoring during the regular season, averaging 30.1 points per game, while shooting over 50% from the field, over 40% from three-point range, and over 90% from the free-throw line. He also led the league in steals, averaging 2.1 per game. 

In spite of a historic regular season for the Warriors and historic MVP season for Curry, they failed to defend their crown during their 2016 playoff run. After the Warriors dramatically came back from a 3-1 series deficit to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals, they ironically became the first team in NBA Finals history to blow a 3-1 series lead. Their Finals opponent, the Cleveland Cavaliers, crushed their hearts in a hardwood classic Game 7, highlighted by LeBron James’ iconic clutch chase-down block of an Andre Iguodala breakaway layup and an iconic clutch Kyrie Irving go-ahead three-point basket. This was surely one of the most compelling NBA Finals Game 7s of all-time, as LeBron James’ triple-double performance triumphantly led Cleveland to their first-ever NBA title. 

In the summer of 2016, the Warriors would sign four-time scoring champion and 2013-14 MVP Kevin Durant to join forces with Curry and the rest of the squad that had set the record for most wins in an NBA regular season in 2015-16. It was a free agent signing that would shock the NBA, considering that Durant was one of the two megastars on the Thunder squad that had just blown a 3-1 Western Conference Finals series lead to Curry and the Warriors. Durant, Curry, and the Warriors would capture the NBA championship the next two seasons: 2016-17 and 2017-18.

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