Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander surprised by MVP announcement detail after win vs. Mavericks

For one, the Thunder held off the tough Western Conference opposition and earned the one-seed, thanks in large part to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s consistent excellence. It even became a bit of a meme that he always finds a way to finish a game with 31 points (he finished with 31 points 13 times in the regular season). Gilgeous-Alexander was also more durable than ever, as he played in a career-high 75 games, all while missing a few games to end the regular season due to a quad injury.

Gilgeous-Alexander posted the best true shooting percentage of his career (63.6 percent) as he somehow found a way to become even more efficient from the field. He wasn’t as big of a free-throw merchant as some rival fans would have you believe as well, as he averaged as many charity stripe attempts per game as Luka Doncic did.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was also ever dangerous in the clutch, thanks to his combination of elite free-throw drawing and shooting abilities, and he can get to his spots at will due to his handles, change of pace, and ability to meet the opposing team’s physicality. He averaged 30.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 6.2 assists, and he also finished tied with De’Aaron Fox for the league lead in total steals (150, 2.0 per game).

The 25-year old guard may not put up stat lines as gaudy as the other two finalists for the MVP award do on a nightly basis. After all, the Thunder have a more balanced roster, as they have more than just two or three players capable of initiating the offense. Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, and Josh Giddey can all commandeer the ship at times, which means that Gilgeous-Alexander isn’t too much of a heliocentric source of offense.

Nonetheless, Gilgeous-Alexander plays within the Thunder’s system, and he has fully bought into head coach Mark Daigneault’s coaching philosophy. Even then, SGA knows when to seize the moment as the captain of the team that finished with the best record in the Western Conference in one of the toughest seasons in recent memory.

Thunder take care of business in Game 1 vs. the Mavericks

The Thunder had eight days of rest before they suited up for their Tuesday night contest against the Mavericks. Thankfully, rust was not an issue, as OKC took command of the game in the second quarter and did not look back.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did not have his best shooting performance (8-19), but his all-around game was outstanding. Mavericks fans will not be pleased with the way he maneuvered his way to his spots all game long, drawing plenty of fouls in the process, and to top it all off, he was a workhorse on the glass, hauling in nine rebounds to go along with the game-high 29 points he finished with.

His playmaking was also on point, as he tallied nine dimes, while he added two steals and two blocks in a game that would fill fantasy basketball players’ hearts with delight.

The Thunder stood their ground defensively, with Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren proving to be an effective backbone of a defense that held the Mavericks to 39.3 percent shooting in Game 1 amid Luguentz Dort’s battles with foul trouble. Jalen Williams then sealed the deal with a personal scoring run in the fourth, and it appears to be all systems go for a Thunder team that still has not lost in the 2024 NBA playoffs.