Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did it again. For the second straight season, the Oklahoma City Thunder guard takes home the NBA MVP awardjoining a club with only 14 members in league history. Back-to-back, as they say – territory reserved for the all-time greats.
But what exactly made this season impossible to overlook? The numbers speak for themselves, and even by modern NBA standards, they’re staggering.
A season on another level
Let’s start with the simplest fact: the OKC Thunder finished with 64 winssecuring the top seed in the Western Conference. And they did it despite a long list of injuries that would have derailed most teams. That alone would already strengthen his MVP case.
But SGA’s impact went far beyond team success. Individually, he accomplished things the league had never seen before. He became the first point guard in NBA history to average over 30 points per game while shooting at least 55% from the field. Scoring at that volume is one thing – doing it with that level of efficiency is something else entirely.
Then there’s perhaps the most absurd stat of all: throughout the entire regular season, he never scored fewer than 20 points. Not once. Not on off nights, not against double teams, not during the grind of February. The only comparable streaks in NBA history belonged to Wilt Chamberlain and Elgin Baylor – names that immediately explain the historical territory Gilgeous-Alexander now occupies.
The plus/minus gap says everything
Another number worth highlighting is his season-long plus/minus: +788. That means when SGA was on the floor, the Thunder outscored opponents by nearly 800 points over the course of the season.
Second place on that list? Victor Wembanyama – more than 100 points behind him. One hundred and twenty, to be exact. That’s not a close race. That’s a different tier entirely.
Entering Michael Jordan territory
Because of this season, Shai has officially entered one of the rarest statistical groups in basketball history, joining Michael Jordan in terms of offensive production and efficiency. Nothing else really needs to be added.
As for back-to-back MVPs by a guard, the last player to do it was Stephen Curry in 2015 and 2016. Before peak Curry, you’d have to go much further back in NBA history. SGA has now inserted himself into that company with almost frightening ease.
Why the second MVP might matter even more
Winning one MVP is already incredibly difficult. Winning two straight is something else entirely, because the NBA adjusts. Teams study you. Defenses prepare specifically for you. The surprise factor disappears. And yet Shai somehow elevated his game even further, almost as if last year’s award had only been a warning sign.
At 26 years old, with a franchise fully built around him and a game that still appears to have room to grow, the question is no longer whether Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the best players on the planet. The real question is: how far can he go?
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