Curry wins ESPY for best male athlete, LeBron nabs best championship performance

Steph Curry was named best male athlete at the ESPYS on Wednesday, capping a ridiculous 2014-15 season that saw him win the NBA MVP award and an NBA championship.

That flicker you just heard was the flint on the lighter that was the ESPYs reigniting the debate over whether LeBron James deserved the NBA Finals MVP award in a loss.

While ESPY awards don't mean a great deal, it was interesting on Wednesday when James was given the award for best championship performance. The Cleveland Cavaliers superstar's performance in the Finals was nothing short of Herculean, as he took on an unprecedented offensive load to drag an injury-depleted team through six games against Curry's Golden State Warriors.

He averaged 35.8 points, 13.3 rebounds, and 8.8 assists, and while his 39.8 percent mark from the floor stands out as a negative, there are exactly zero NBA players who could've scored at that volume against that level of defense.

But James' team lost, Andre Iguodala was named Finals MVP, and James topped American Pharoah, Lauren Haeger, and Madison Bumgarner - all deserving nominees - for the award.

Curry, meanwhile, was also given the nod over James as best NBA player, further cementing his status atop the league following his MVP campaign. Curry averaged 26 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 6.3 assists in the Finals, but Iguodala's defense on James precluded Curry from doubling down on MVP hardware.

Curry's teammate Klay Thompson was nominated for best record-breaking performance for his 37-point quarter in January, but lost out to Peyton Manning's record-setting 509th touchdown pass.

The Warriors were nominated for best team, losing out to the U.S. women's national soccer team.