Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wins NBA MVP; Nikola Jokic 2nd

OKLAHOMA CITY — After winning his first scoring title and leading the Oklahoma City Thunder to a league-high 68 wins, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has earned his first NBA MVP award, it was announced Wednesday.

The league officially announced the honor Wednesday night, a few nights after Gilgeous-Alexander’s Thunder defeated Nikola Jokic’s Denver Nuggets in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals.

Gilgeous-Alexander finished as the runner-up in last season’s MVP voting, when Jokic won his third MVP in four seasons.

The Thunder recognized the honor with a news conference at the team’s practice facility, where Gilgeous-Alexander was flanked by his Oklahoma City teammates, who wore Rolex watches he bought as a token of his appreciation.

“I always thought that I could be a really good player because I had seen what putting your head down and working and controlling what you control can do for you,” said Gilgeous-Alexander, who became emotional while thanking his wife. “I made tremendous strides, but I never thought this was going to happen.

“I dreamt about it as a kid, but as a kid, it’s a fake dream. But as the days go on and you realize that you get closer to your dream, it’s hard to not freak out. It’s hard to not be a 6-year-old kid again. And I think that’s what’s allowed me to achieve it. I tried to just not focus on it and just worry about what’s gotten to this place.”

Gilgeous-Alexander received 71 of the 100 first-place votes in balloting, with Jokic getting the other 29 and finishing as the runner-up. Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo was third, getting 88 of the possible 100 third-place votes.

Gilgeous-Alexander led the league with 32.7 points per game on 51.9% shooting from the floor and also averaged 6.4 assists, 5.0 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocks. The only other player in NBA history to average at least 30 points on 50% shooting, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1 block per game in a season is Michael Jordan, who did it in 1987-88 and 1990-91 — the seasons that he won the first two of his five MVPs.

Jokic had arguably the best season of his career, averaging 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, 10.2 assists and 1.8 steals, but Gilgeous-Alexander also had a historical campaign for an Oklahoma City team that broke the NBA record for point differential (plus-12.9 per game) and finished with 18 more victories than the Nuggets.

Jokic, 30, became the third player in NBA history to be in the top two in MVP voting in five straight seasons, joining Larry Bird (1981 to 1986) and Bill Russell (1958 to 1963).

Gilgeous-Alexander, 26, joined an exclusive club by leading the league in scoring for a team that won 60 or more games. This is the 10th instance that has been accomplished in NBA history. The only time that player did not win the MVP was in 1996-97, when Utah’s Karl Malone won the honor over Jordan.

“His value is his confidence,” Oklahoma City’s Kenrich Williams said of Gilgeous-Alexander, his Thunder teammate for the past five seasons. “His confidence that he has in himself and the confidence that he instills in every one of his teammates, including the coaches.”

This was the third straight season that Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged at least 30 points while shooting better than 50%. The only other players who have done that for three straight seasons — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Antetokounmpo, Wilt Chamberlain and Jordan — all won multiple MVPs.

Gilgeous-Alexander was also a major contributor to Oklahoma City’s top-ranked defense. He had 208 “stocks” (steals and blocks) this season, ranking third behind San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama and Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels.

Gilgeous-Alexander is the third player in franchise history to win an MVP, joining Kevin Durant (2014) and Russell Westbrook (2017).

After being named a first-team All-NBA selection the past two seasons, Gilgeous-Alexander had already qualified to be eligible to sign an unprecedented, four-year, $294 million supermax extension this summer. It would be the deal with the highest annual value ($73.3 million) in league history.

Boston’s Jayson Tatum was fourth, Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell was fifth and the Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James was sixth — the 20th time in his 22-year career that he got some MVP votes.

Detroit’s Cade Cunningham and Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards tied for seventh, Golden State’s Stephen Curry was ninth and three players — the LA Clippers’ James Harden, New York’s Jalen Brunson and Cleveland’s Evan Mobley — tied for 10th.

ESPN’s Bobby Marks contributed to this report.