Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards has labelled Oklahoma City Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as his MVP for the season.
Though the season is still far from its conclusion, Edwards is convinced that Gilgeous-Alexander is on track to secure his first MVP title after narrowly missing out the previous year.
“The MVP of the NBA,” Edwards said.
Edwards’ appreciation comes after witnessing an impressive performance by Gilgeous-Alexander during Oklahoma City’s 113-105 victory over the Timberwolves on Tuesday night, where the guard scored 40 points.
The Thunder’s triumph marked their 12th consecutive regular-season win, excluding their NBA Cup finals loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, which is not counted in regular-season standings.
During this streak, Gilgeous-Alexander has been unstoppable, averaging 33.4 points per game while shooting an impressive 56.6% from the field.
Their run is the longest winning streak since the franchise relocated to Oklahoma City.
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) January 1, 2025
Reflecting on his current form, Gilgeous-Alexander said: “I feel like I’m flowing, like the game’s just coming. I’m not pressing, not thinking, just out there hooping. The hard work’s paying off.”
Edwards highlighted the ease with which Gilgeous-Alexander scores.
He added: “To me, he’s unguardable. As far as any one-on-one matchup, yeah, you can go on and give it up.
“Just give him two points most of the time. So I think you got to trap him. Maybe that don’t work, but you got to try it.
“For sure you got to send a second body, especially if he got a favorable matchup. Anytime he got somebody that he knows can’t guard him, ah, he going to score every time.
While Edwards acknowledged the impressive case being built by three-time MVP Nikola Jokic – who is currently averaging 31.0 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 9.5 assists for the Denver Nuggets – he firmly believes that Gilgeous-Alexander should be the leading MVP candidate.
“I don’t know if they could give it to [Jokic] again. Yeah, I would say Shai. Yeah, he’s looking like the MVP, man. He was incredible once again tonight.
“He’s consistent every night. His team gonna give him the ball and just let him rock out every night. It’s nothing to think about. ‘Hey, get Shai the ball and he going to get busy, and then we’re going to figure it out after that.’
“I love watching that. It’s incredible, man. If he is keeping him like that, I hope they give [MVP] to him this year for sure. I feel like he should have won it last year, but he’s playing out his mind right now.”
Gilgeous-Alexander expressed gratitude for Edwards’ kind words, appreciating the recognition from a peer.
“No offence to you guys in the media, but the best satisfaction is when your peers and the guys that do the same thing for a living at a very high level that you do recognise and respect your craft and your talent,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.
“That’s a really good feeling. Obviously the caliber player he is, the sky’s the limit. Hard-fought battle tonight.”
