Don’t know about the Larry O’ Brien, but Stephen Curry ain’t going home empty handed this season. The Warriors are 2-1 up against the Rockets right now, and look primed to make that 3 at the Chase tonight. But they have some thanks to give beforehand- more like lauds, actually. Curry’s just been confirmed as the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year for the 2024-25 season. But that begs the question- what is this award?

It’s much like the name says- it’s for the best teammate in the league. He pipped the likes of Jalen Brunson, Al Horford, DeAndre Jordan, and Jaren Jackson Jr. for it. You don’t even have to be a Warriors fan to agree with this sentiment. Their players have said it enough- there’s no better teammate and leader than Stephen Curry.

NBA’s Instagram post was captioned “@stephencurry30 receives the honor that recognizes the player deemed the best teammate based on selfless play, on and off court leadership as a mentor and role model to other NBA players, and commitment and dedication to team.” Some of them love it. But the majority may be like most of the readers right now- they didn’t even know this award existed!

Fans perplexed as Stephen Curry’s award goes unregistered in their minds

“Am i wildin or have i never heard of this award,” read one comment. No netizen, you’re not wilding. There’s far too many fans who share the same sentiment. So for the ones still confused, let’s see the history of the award.

The Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year honours have been around for a lot longer than people think. Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups was the first honoree for this, back in 2013. The award is named after Jack Twyman and Maurice Stokes, who played together from 1955-1958 for the Rochester/Cincinnati Royals, which is now the Sacramento Kings. Steph took this award from Mike Conley, who’d won it last year for the Timberwolves. Strange, right? This isn’t the first time someone’s winning it. But Curry winning it might’ve gotten it into attention a lot more. Hence, the reactions.

The most popular reactions were the ones that read “what kinda award💀” and “What are these awards 💀.” And they’re right. There’s already too many individual awards in the NBA- although this one seems more relevant than most.

The Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year is a part of 18 individual awards given out to players, which include the likes of the MVP, NBA Finals MVP, Coach of the Year, and Rookie of the Year. So it seems fitting to have a teammate of the year too, right? It’s a team sport afterall. But taking a look at the likes of the Hustle Award, Community Assist Award, and the J Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award- why have so many in the first place? If anything, winning an individual award seems all-the-more worthless if every second spent on the court is to be recognised.

And now come the moments of respect. Stephen Curry has been given the award that fits him best- best teammate. His teammates have been more than vocal of his qualities as a squad player and a leader in the dressing room. Well, this award gave the fans a reason to attest to it too.

The most common narrative from the positives can be summed up by these: “He deserves this award every year!”, “Look at Steph man, so inspirational 😭”, and “He deserves this. Great teamate and even better player 👑”.

His old age might fool you. Even at 37 years of age, he still bosses the court game after game. If anything, many fans wonder why he didn’t win the award before. Every great team needs a leader, a vocal teammate that values the group’s success over their own. The stats might not speak of his teamplay, but his work on camera during games justifies it. Do you think he’s the greatest teammate of all time? Might just cement his GOAT status that much more, right?

But 1st place has to go to the comment that reads: “I know Jimmy happy 🔥🔥🔥.” This fan knows- no team member has been more vocal of Stephen Curry’s exceptional teamplay than the Warriors‘ newest attacking machine.

The Batman-Robin duo we didn’t know we needed. Butler admits it as much. “He real real. Good dude. Talks. He’s always trying to help everybody be great. Laughs. Wants to have a good time. Loves the game. Loves to compete, and loves to win. But he is the guy. He is the man. He is everything everybody says of him. More than anything, he’s just nice. I’m not talking about on the court. He’s just genuinely a good human being. To everybody. It’s very, very, very refreshing. Because he doesn’t have to be that way,” said Butler to Anthony Slater.

Not just the best player, but the best teammate. If anything, that’s more valuable for someome like Stephen Curry. No one deserves this award more than than him- his team certainly thinks so. But the addition of something like this just begs the question. Are there too many individual awards in the NBA? If so, which ones should be ommitted?