Oklahoma City Thunder star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was named NBA Most Valuable Player for the 2024-25 regular season for the first time in his career on Wednesday.
Gilgeous-Alexander said he tried “so hard to not think about” winning the MVP award throughout the season but gave credit to his teammates for the honor.
“Just worry about playing basketball and getting better and trying to win games,” he told the NBA on TNT crew with his Thunder teammates sitting all around him.
“But as a competitor, and as a kid dreaming of the game, it’s always in the back of your mind. I’m very thankful to be on this side of the ballot. But none of it is possible without the guys behind me. The amount of games we won, the fashion we won the games, is so impressive. Probably the main reason I got the award – so without them it’s not possible.”
The seven-year pro out of the University of Kentucky averaged a league-leading 32.7 points per game as the Thunder finished the season an NBA-best 68-14. The Canadian also averaged 5.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocks per game during the campaign.
In somewhat of a parallel to the playoffs, where OKC knocked off the Denver Nuggets in seven games to move into the Western Conference Finals, Gilgeous-Alexander fought off three-time league MVP Nikola Jokić – who averaged an incredible triple-double on the year – to win the award.
The Thunder star previously finished runner-up to Jokić in last year’s voting and fifth following the 2022-23 season.
Jokić finished second in the MVP voting this year while Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo came in third place.
Gilgeous-Alexander is the third Thunder player to win the award, after Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.
This is the seventh consecutive year an international player has won the award. The last American player to win the honor was James Harden in the 2017-18 season.
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