SGA Day in OKC: A Brief Look into the MVP's Thunder History

"Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of 18 Thunder players who collectively won OKC our first championship," Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt said Wednesday morning on X.

"All 18 will live forever in our city’s history and in our hearts. In recognition of this accomplishment, I hereby proclaim that today is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Day in OKC!"

The culmination of the designated Thunder player days in Oklahoma City culminates with SGA, the team's MVP, league scoring champ, Western Conference MVP, NBA Finals MVP, All-NBA First Team member, Best Male Athlete at the ESPY's—and many more accolades. It's been a season and year of triumph for one of the best basketball players on the planet, and he's only 27 years old.

But in just six years in Oklahoma City, he could and should already be considered as the most accomplished player to put on the uniform. He helped dig the team out of the mud, and led them to an NBA title in a very short amount of time, and he's primed to continue to lead them to great heights for years to come as the Thunder inked Gilgeous-Alexander to a four-year, $285 million supermax contract this summer.

What led to this deal?

After relocating from Los Angeles to Oklahoma City, going from the Clippers to the Thunder, a bright-eyed GIlgeous-Alexander mentored by Chris Paul in the lone year of 2019-20 set the course for the young Thunder guard. His first year in Bricktown saw him nearly double his scoring production while sustaining efficiency and improving as a rebounder.

The next year, stepping fully into rebuild mode with Oklahoma City, some said his future was being watered down having to endure the situation the Thunder found itself in. But he stayed the course, ultimately playing 35 games in 2020-21 due to a torn plantar fascia, but that small sample size was telling—and it would actually see him with a massive jump in three-point shooting, both in frequency and efficiency, something he wouldn't quite get back to until this past season's MVP campaign.

His most stagnant season (stagnant still being an improvement, which is expected of Gilgeous-Alexander who always fine tunes), came in 2021-22, making a slight improvement in scoring and dropping in efficiency. That didn't last.

In 2022-23, where Oklahoma City really started to turn a corner, Gilgeous-Alexander broke a 30-point-per-game average on the season for the first time in his career, shooting over 50% from the floor and helping the Thunder to reach the postseason.

Another 30-point average the next year saw the Thunder snag the No. 1 seed but come up short in the second round of the playoffs, leading Oklahoma City fans to a season of elation, nervousness and relief coming in 2024-25.

An MVP season, averaging 32.7 points to become the league's scoring champ, several postseason awards and many extracurricular accolades, the praise Gilgeous-Alexander would go on to receive is nothing but deserved in this city, and he's fully embraced it.

From now on, July 30 will be known as SGA day in Oklahoma City, and everyone in town will think of the year where Gilgeous-Alexander brought back the Larry O'Brien to Bricktown.