SGA is Standing Out in Highly Contested MVP Race

OKC battled several injuries last season as well, missing Chet Holmgren for the majority of the year and missing Alex Caruso for a substantial time. The common denominator for OKC’s continued success during the tough times is SGA.

Since the 2023-24 season, OKC has a 130-34 record with Shai playing, unprecedented excellence. Their continued dominance with him shows that he is arguably the most valuable player in the association.

Near Perfection in the Clutch

Due to the Thunder’s consistent blowouts this season, SGA has only played in six of the 13 fourth quarters; despite this, he still leads the NBA in clutch points with 56, while the second-place player, Tyrese Maxey, has just 35.

In this limited time, Shai has already had signature late-game moments. To start the season, they had back-to-back double-overtime wins against the Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers. Against Houston, Shai hit a last-second shot to send the game to overtime, and facing Indiana, he had 55 points to drag OKC to a victory.

In such a short span, nobody has made as significant an impact in clutch scenarios as SGA.

Greatly Improved Playmaking

Although he has always been a good playmaker, Shai has now made it a true weapon. He is averaging a career-high 6.6 assists per game, while also averaging a career-low 1.7 turnovers per game— this 3.91 assist-turnover ratio puts him at ninth in the league (minimum 15 minutes per game and six games played).

With his astounding flexibility, length, and feel, he has always been able to reach these playmaking heights, but this year, he has finally connected all of it.

The primary reason for his recent success is the increased defensive attention he is receiving this year. He has always been a heavily focused player, but this season, many teams are sending aggressive zones at OKC that resemble those seen in the playoffs.

These coverages leave other Thunder players open, and because of all the different passing angles Shai is capable of, it is countless easy buckets. SGA’s playmaking leap has gone under the radar for many people, but it has made the Thunder offense seem effortless at times.

Outlandish Scoring Numbers

It’s been known for years that scoring is the headline of Shai’s game, but he has taken it up a notch this year. He is comfortably in the lead for most points and would be near the top if he had never played in the fourth quarter.

He has played just the 28th most minutes per game, and is averaging nearly a point per minute. In his 441 minutes played, he has 423 points. His efficiency is also boosted; he is shooting 78% at the rim (a career high) and has a career-best true shooting percentage of 64.4%.

Despite this increased defensive attention and “sell-out” mentality from the defense, SGA is continuing to get to his spots and score at will.

Shai’s MVP case is as strong as ever, and with his individual and team success steadily rising, it will be difficult not to give him the hardware.