Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been named the 2024-25 NBA Most Valuable Player, the league announced on Wednesday.
Gilgeous-Alexander wins the award for the first time in his career after edging out Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks) and is the recipient of the prestigious Michael Jordan Trophy.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the recipient of the Michael Jordan Trophy as the 2024-25 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player. pic.twitter.com/kubWerv2OG
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 21, 2025
The 26-year-old, who finished second in the voting last season, is the second Canadian to win the award, alongside two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash (2004-05 and 2005-06). He is, however, the third Thunder player to win the award after Kevin Durant (2013-14) and Russell Westbrook (2016-17).
Gilgeous-Alexander garnered 913 total points after receiving 71 first-place votes from a global media panel of 100 voters, while Jokic finished second with 29 first-place votes and Antetokounmpo in third with 470 total points and zero first-place votes.
The three-time All-Star averaged 32.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 1.72 steals, and 1.01 blocks in 34.2 minutes across 76 games in the 2024-25 regular season. He shot 51.9% from the field and 37.5% from three-point range, setting career highs in points, assists, and blocks per game as he led OKC to a league-best 68-14 record in the regular season.
Gilgeous-Alexander, the 11th overall pick in the 2018 draft, won the NBA scoring title for the first time this season. He became the first player to lead the league in games with at least 20 points (75), 30 points (49), 40 points (13), and 50 points (four) in a single season since James Harden in 2018-19.
Our MVP’s season through the numbers
#SGA2MVP | #KiaMVP pic.twitter.com/dfx9wucJgp
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) May 22, 2025
The Canadian was named the NBA Western Conference Player of the Month three times and the NBA Western Conference Player of the Week twice. He also earned a place on the NBA Cup All-Tournament Team after leading the Thunder to a second-place finish.
Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder are currently focused on the playoffs, where they are up 1-0 against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals.
