A player who leads his team to the best record in the league and the No. 1 seed in the playoffs is pretty valuable. Throw in a scoring title and an ability to take over games when needed, and you have Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was named NBA Most Valuable Player on Wednesday, May 21.
Why did Shai Gilgeous-Alexander win NBA MVP?
SGA, as he is known, averaged 32.7 points per game on 51% shooting, and also averaged over six assists and five rebounds as the Thunder’s point guard. Oklahoma City won a team-record 68 regular-season games. The only other player in league history to average those numbers over a full season is his airness himself, Michael Jordan, during two of his five MVP campaigns. However, Gilgeous-Alexander’s teammates said it’s another quality that makes him most valuable.
“His confidence,” Thunder forward Kenrich Williams said. “The confidence he has in himself and the confidence he instills in every one of his teammates, including the coaches.”
SGA beat out the man he finished second to in 2024, three-time MVP Nikola Jokic. The Denver Nuggets star had arguably his best season, but his team struggled down the stretch, while clutch performances by Gilgeous-Alexander in the final month put him over the top with voters.
A win Tuesday night, May 20, over Minnesota in game one of the Western Conference finals was a great example of Gilgeous-Alexander’s ability to take over a game. He finished with 31 points despite a poor shooting first half, as the Thunder won 114-88.
“My energy and effort and what I put on the floor speaks louder than anything,” Gilgeous-Alexander said after the win. “That’s just how I try to not only go about the game, but go about life. Actions always mean louder than words to me, especially. So that’s just how I go about it.”
How does Gilgeous-Alexander stack up among former winners?
The former University of Kentucky standout is the second Canadian-born player to win the award after Steve Nash, who won it in 2005 and 2006. He is also the seventh consecutive foreign player to win MVP. Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault says it’s that point guard mentality and understated leadership that permeates throughout the team –– they root for one another.
“They all have these individual careers,” Daigneault said. “It’s easy to see yourself as an independent contractor in the NBA because the business is so cutthroat at times, but these guys really prioritize the locker room, the relationships inside the locker room above that, and it’s very, very impressive. He does that, but everybody on the team does that.”
The Thunder hope to have that cohesion Thursday night, May 22, in Oklahoma City, where they expect a stronger push from the Timberwolves in game two. Another typical night from the now-MVP Gilgeous-Alexander would also go a long way toward taking control of the series.
