For the first two months of the 2021-22 NBA season, Warriors star Steph Curry looked like he was on track to win his third league MVP.
But a dip in production, combined with the Warriors' lackluster play, shelved most people from including Curry in MVP discussions this season. The MVP chatter has moved on to Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Ja Morant and a few other stars.
With Curry ruled out for the regular season, the conversation has shifted to whether or not he accomplished enough to be named to one of the three All-NBA teams.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
The Ringer's Bill Simmons and Ryen Russillo debated that topic during a larger chat on The Bill Simmons Podcast about who should make the three All-NBA teams.
Neither Simmons or Russillo have Curry on the All-NBA First Team, which makes sense since he finished the season averaging 25.5 points per game, currently 12th in the NBA. Curry's Player Efficiency Rating (PER) is 21.56, which sits at 24th in the league at the moment.
For reference, Simmons and Russillo agree that Jokic, Antetokounmpo, Devin Booker and Luka Doncic should be four of the five members of the All-NBA First Team. Russllio has Jayson Tatum as the fifth member, while Simmons has Kevin Durant.
However, Russillo has Curry as one of the two guards on his All-NBA Second Team, and that's where Simmons disagrees. They both did agree Ja Morant is the second guard on the Second Team.
Golden State Warriors
Find the latest Golden State Warriors news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Bay Area and California.
"All right, I'm glad you're sitting down," Simmons said to Russillo. "I have Trae [Young] over Curry."
"OK," Russillo said after a long pause. "The floor is yours. The stats are insane."
"I looked at it pretty carefully," Simmons responded. "[Young] is going to end up playing 12 more games. Steph's at 64, Trae's going to end up at like 76. Trae is averaging 28 [points], 10 [assists] and four [rebounds]. His splits are 46 percent [from the field], 38 percent 3-point, 90 percent free throw. 25.5 PER and he's going to end up at 76-77 games.
"Curry's at 26 [points], five [rebounds] and six [assists], 44 percent [from the field], 38 percent from three, 21.5 percent PER. If you're going by advanced metrics, Trae beats him in every respect. If you go eye test, what you mean to a team, leadership, better record, it's Steph. But I think Trae has kept this Atlanta team afloat. That team is a mess. They lost John Collins for the year, guys are in and out, Cam Reddish is (gone)."
Through the Warriors' Christmas Day win over the Phoenix Suns, Curry was averaging 27.9 points per game on 43.5 percent shooting from the field and 39.9 percent from behind the 3-point line. But since that impressive road win in The Valley, Curry averaged 23.2 points in 33 games.
While Curry's numbers were trending down after Dec. 25, Young averaged 29 points per game since then.
Considering Curry led the NBA in scoring at 32 points per game last year, a drop to 25.5 this season is noticeable, and Simmons simply wishes the Warriors' leader had played better before he sustained a sprained ligament in his left foot on March 16 against the Boston Celtics.
"I guess my question is, did Steph have that good of a year?" Simmons asked Russillo.
"By his standards, no," Russillo responded.
"It was what, the seventh best year of his career?" Simmons said. "His team hasn't even won 50 games (Warriors won their 50th game Sunday night). If you're telling me this is a two-seed, 60 wins, his stats are a little off but look what he means, I'm in. But now you're telling me they might be a four-seed and he's having the seventh best year of his career, I don't know. Trae crushes him head-to-head from stats, he's just better."
While Young's stats do outshine Curry's, the impact Steph makes on the Warriors and winning often cannot be shown on the stat sheet. Additionally, Young's usage rate (34.4 percent, fourth in NBA) is much higher than Steph's (30.8 percent, 11th in NBA), as Young has the ball in his hands more while Curry often works off the ball within the flow of coach Steve Kerr's motion offense.
RELATED: Kerr believes Trae compares more to Luka, not Steph
Simmons did say he had Young over Curry on the All-NBA Second Team right now and reserved the right to change his mind before the end of the season. He also noted that whichever one didn't make the Second Team would be one of the two guards on his All-NBA Third Team.
Curry has made seven All-NBA teams with four First-Team selections, two Second-Team selections and one Third-Team selection. He should add an eighth selection this season, though it's not exactly clear where he will wind up.
Based on the debate Simmons and Russillo had, it could be a tough choice for voters.