Oklahoma City Thunder star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has secured his second consecutive NBA MVP award.
The announcement was made just before Sunday’s Game 7 between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons. This confirms earlier reporting from ESPN’s Shams Charania, who leaked the selection on Sunday morning. The honour arrives one day before the defending champions begin their Western Conference finals series with the San Antonio Spurs.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s Standout Season
Led by their star point guard, the Thunder finished with a 64-18 record. This earned them the NBA’s best mark for the second straight season. Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 31.1 points, placing him second in the league behind the Los Angeles Lakers’ Luka Dončić (33.5). He also led the Thunder with 6.6 assists, along with 4.3 assists and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 39% on 3-pointers.
Gilgeous-Alexander, 27, is the 14th player in league history to win MVP in back-to-back seasons. It’s the eighth straight year that an international player has won the award, with the Canadian guard receiving 83 of 100 first-place votes.
The Runner-Up and Other Contenders
Following Gilgeous-Alexander, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić finished ahead of San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama. Jokić, a three-time MVP winner, earned 10 first-place votes to Wembanyama’s five.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s Reaction and Path to Success
In an interview after the official announcement, Gilgeous-Alexander cited “hard work” in earning the award. He also shouted out his teammates for their support on the court. He spoke about working to improve his game early in his career and how that led him to where he is today.
“I saw a growth really fast in those summers and the summers leading up to when I got drafted and I was like, ‘If I can duplicate that every summer and get better at that rate then I’ll eventually get to where I wanna go, and it’s worked out for me,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.
A Look Back at Recent MVP Winners
- The last player to win consecutive MVPs was Jokić, who earned the award for the 2020-21 and 2021-22 campaigns.
- Prior to Jokić, the Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo won the honour for the previous two seasons.
- Since 2000, the list of back-to-back MVP winners includes Tim Duncan, Steve Nash, LeBron James (who did it twice) and Stephen Curry.
Draft Day and Trades
With the NBA Draft coming up in a month, it’s worth noting that Gilgeous-Alexander was the No. 11 overall selection out of Kentucky in 2018 by the Charlotte Hornets. His rights were traded to the Los Angeles Clippers on draft night for Miles Bridges and two second-round picks.
One year later, SGA was dealt to the Thunder with five first-round selections, two first-round pick swaps and Danilo Galinari in exchange for Paul George and a first-rounder.
Challenges Faced During the Season
Gilgeous-Alexander arguably had to shoulder a greater offensive burden this season with Jalen Williams limited to 33 games due to lingering hamstring injuries. Ajay Mitchell, Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein also missed 25 or more games this season.
That surely