OKLAHOMA City (OKC) Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been voted the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the second consecutive season, the league announced on Sunday night.
Gilgeous-Alexander is the 14th player in league history to win back-to-back MVPs. He is the first player to win consecutive MVP awards since Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic in 2020-21 and 2021-22 and the first guard to win consecutive MVPs since Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry in 2014-15 and 2015-16.
“It’s special,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of having two MVPs. “Not really for me personally but more so for the city and organization.”
Gilgeous-Alexander received 83 first-place votes and won handily with 939 points in balloting by a panel of 100 voters who cover the NBA.
Jokic received 10 first-place votes and finished second in the balloting with 634 points. Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs was third with 589 points and five first-place votes.
Signed to a four-year, $273.3-million super maximum contract extension in the offseason, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 31.1 points, 6.6 assists and 4.3 rebounds in 68 games (all starts) this season as Oklahoma City went 64-18 and compiled the best record in the NBA.
Not surprisingly, the humble Gilgeous-Alexander passed on the credit to the other Oklahoma City players.
“Thank you guys so much for setting screens, to rebounding when I miss, to passing me the ball even though I don’t pass you the ball,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Everything you guys do to make me a better player out there, I really appreciate you guys.”
Gilgeous-Alexander became the first player since legendary Wilt Chamberlain (1963-64) to score 20-plus points in every regular-season game, with a minimum of 50 games played. He also broke Chamberlain’s record of 126 straight 20-plus point efforts and his streak stands at 140 entering next season.
Gilgeous-Alexander, 27, is averaging 25.3 points, 5.3 assists and 4.7 boards in 530 career games (521 starts) with the Los Angeles Clippers (2018-19) and Thunder. He was acquired from Los Angeles in 2019 as part of many assets Oklahoma City received in the Paul George deal. — Reuters
