The Oklahoma City Thunder are fresh off their most successful season since Kevin Durant departed. They became the youngest first seed in league history and fought out a grueling Round 2 series against the Dallas Mavericks.
This past season marked the beginning of another championship window for the Thunder. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s ascension into one of the league’s best players headlines their group.
The 25-year-old had his best season yet and finished runner-up for MVP behind Nikola Jokic. It was a tight race that came down to the wire.
According to Paul George, he felt like Gilgeous-Alexander should’ve won MVP last season and bets he’ll be the favorite heading into the 2024-24 campaign.
George — who recently joined the Philadelphia 76ers — talked about the MVP discourse and how the narratives around it change season-by-season. He vouched for Gilgeous-Alexander on a recent episode of his “Podcast P” show.
“I thought he was the best example of what the MVP should be,” George said. “What he did to a team that no one had expectations — especially playing in the West, how hard that is to be No. 1. And average 30-plus… To take that team where he took them, I thought it was a no-brainer.”
George later clarified that even though Gilgeous-Alexader was the undisputed best player in OKC, that doesn’t mean he didn’t have a rich squad. Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams help round out one of the best trios.
“Not to say the Thunder didn’t give Shai help. But this was a team no one had any expectations of,” George said. “For me, I just think what you actually bring to the table and how you affect your team’s success should be valued the most.”
The 34-year-old then went to a classic fallacy of saying the Thunder wouldn’t have sniffed the first seed without Gilgeous-Alexander. He said the experienced vet helped lead OKC.
“If you take Shai off that group, OKC is probably in the lottery. Let’s just be real,” George said. “As much talent as they have, I just thought they were young and they lacked the experience that Shai brought and gave the confidence to a lot of players.”
George then made his early prediction for next season. He thinks Gilgeous-Alexander will enter the year as the favorite to win the prestigious award. It’s definitely within the realm of possibility as he’s in his prime.
“If we’re looking at the front-runner MVP for next season, Shai’s got my pick,” George said.
Paul George with high praise about SGA: “If we’re looking at the front runner MVP for next season, Shai’s got my pick.”
pic.twitter.com/vJdms1C9K9— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) July 8, 2024
As most know, George and Gilgeous-Alexander will forever be linked together for the rest of their careers. They were the main pieces involved in the blockbuster deal between the Thunder and LA Clippers in 2019.
After George’s departure, it’s easy to say the Clippers lost that league-altering trade by a wide margin. He left LA with no championship in five years and a single Western Conference Finals appearance at its peak.
As George leaves for Philly, the Clippers are stuck with an old, expensive roster led by Kawhi Leonard and James Harden. Leonard’s unreliable durability is well documented and a large reason LA failed to win a title.
Meanwhile, the Clippers laid the foundation of OKC’s current title window. The trade also included a plethora of draft picks through the 2020s. Williams was selected with LA’s lottery pick in 2022. There is still fruit to enjoy from the deal for the Thunder through the next couple of draft cycles.
Even though the deal turned lopsided in OKC’s favor, George’s admiration for Gilgeous-Alexander is cool to see. It’s obvious the latter is well-respected among the league’s upper echelon.
