The Oklahoma City Thunder will be taking on the Philadelphia 76ers, and they’ll be without a few of their key pieces in the matchup. Most specifically, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is listed as out, but it’s not for an injury. The Thunder are giving Gilgeous-Alexander the night off for rest, and it’s justified with all the work he’s been putting in on the court throughout the season, which has led him to be in MVP conversations.
Not only is he in MVP conversations, but he’s the current frontrunner for the award right now, averaging 33.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game, all while leading the Thunder to the best record in the Western Conference by a substantial amount of games.
He’s played most of the season as well, so it makes sense to give him the night off, and the league shouldn’t try to investigate why he’s out because it isn’t a nationally televised game. In all honesty, the 76ers are going through their own injury woes, and their big three haven’t played in weeks.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shares his case for MVP
It’s a two-man race for MVP at the moment between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic, two players who were also the finalists last season. Jokic took home his third award, but this season, it looks like Gilgeous-Alexander has a good chance, and he gave his case for winning at the end of the season.
“If I had the exact same numbers I have and we were tenth in the west, it wouldn’t matter,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I’ve averaged 30 [points], and we’ve been in the Play-In, and I was fifth in the MVP ladder. The reason why I have my success is because of this team. It’s because of this group, and that’s all it’s really about. I always say it’s about winning, and when you win, everything falls into line.
“And I think because of that mentality, what are we, 12 games ahead of the next seed? I think that’s why we have that mentality where winning is all that matters, and everything else falls in line because of it.”
Both players have good cases for winning, but Gilgeous-Alexander is playing out of his mind right now and it’s made the Thunder one of the best teams in the league. Jokic is having a better year than his MVP season, but it hasn’t amounted to the winning as compared to the Thunder, even though they’re floating around the second and third seed in the conference.
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