Thunder Score now has a clear storyline to watch this season: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander could join Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain and Larry Bird as the only players to win three consecutive NBA MVP awards.
That is rare company, and it helps explain why the Oklahoma City Thunder star remains one of the league’s defining players. Only Russell, Chamberlain and Bird have ever managed three straight MVPs, and no one has done it in 40 years. If Gilgeous-Alexander gets there, it would be a major historical achievement, not just another award on the shelf.
It also would fit the way his rise has gone. Over the last two seasons, Gilgeous-Alexander collected more than 75% of the first-place MVP votes and averaged 32 points per game. He has already won two MVPs, and his profile has only grown as Oklahoma City continues to lean on him as the centerpiece.
What Gilgeous-Alexander is focused on
Gilgeous-Alexander is not making the season about the award chase. He said he is focused on being the best player he can be for his team and winning games, adding that the same approach has worked for him in the past.
“I’ve just got to be the best player I can be for this basketball team, win as many games as possible,” he said. “That kind of recipe for me in the past has kind of worked, and I’ve been fortunate to win two in a row.”
He also said there is no change in his mindset entering the season. “No different for me going into this season,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.
That is the practical part of this race. Individual awards tend to follow team success, and Oklahoma City will need to keep winning for the conversation to stay centered on him. Gilgeous-Alexander said he believes he is a better player now, noting that he feels more versatile and in better shape, too.
Why the race matters now
The preseason picture around the NBA adds another layer. Last month, Sam Presti discussed Gilgeous-Alexander in his preseason news conference, praising the qualities that have helped him become a consistent elite performer.
Presti said Gilgeous-Alexander has “something that separates them from the others that makes them uniquely different,” and pointed to the guard’s work ethic, discipline and character. He also said, “His emotional awareness and regulation is superior, in my opinion,” and called his overall outlook “extraordinary.”
Presti added that “his view is layered” and that Gilgeous-Alexander “doesn’t live in a pass-fail world,” which he believes has helped fuel his ascent from a lightly recruited college player to an NBA star. Presti summed up the outlook by saying, “He’s still going” and “He’s got a lot more levels to go.”
The bigger league-wide context is that international players have won the last eight MVP awards, and the preseason favorite for next spring is Victor Wembanyama. Still, Gilgeous-Alexander remains firmly in the mix after back-to-back wins and another season that could put him in one of the most exclusive groups in league history.
For Thunder Score, that makes this season simple to track: if Gilgeous-Alexander keeps producing at an MVP level and Oklahoma City keeps winning, the third straight trophy is not just possible. It would put him alongside three legends the league has not matched in four decades.
