DENVER – As Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander walked off the floor with a critical playoff road win in hand, some fans chanted “MVP” in the home arena of Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic — his biggest competition for the NBA Most Valuable Player award.
Gilgeous-Alexander lived up to the “do or die” challenge by logging game highs of 25 points, including nine made free throws, and six assists in the Thunder’s 92-87 victory over the Nuggets in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals on Sunday. In a struggle of an offensive game for both teams, the three-time All-Star scored nine points in the fourth quarter to seal the game.
After Gilgeous-Alexander stepped up in the most daunting challenge of this otherwise stellar season, the Western Conference’s top seed evened the best-of-seven series at 2-2.
“For myself, more than anything, every occasion, every moment, the player that I want to be when it’s all said and done is a player that relishes that [challenge], embraces that and conquers that,” Gilgeous-Alexander said to Andscape. “If I want to be that guy, I can’t run from it. So, I put that on myself. I put that on my shoulders. And I expect myself to step up in those situations. If I don’t, I get back to work and do it all over again.”
Gilgeous-Alexander appears to be the favorite for the 2025 NBA MVP, with his fellow finalists including Jokic and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. Gilgeous-Alexander averaged an NBA-best 32.7 points as well as 6.4 rebounds and five assists, and was the league’s only player who finished in the top 5 in both offensive and defensive rating, according to ESPN Stats & Info. The Thunder also led the league in regular-season wins (68).
Regardless of the MVP outcome, Jokic and Antetokounmpo have accomplished something Gilgeous-Alexander is still striving for: winning an NBA championship. Oklahoma City hasn’t won an NBA title since the franchise moved from Seattle in 2008. As beautiful as it would be to win MVP, being Finals MVP with a championship is much more appealing to the Thunder star.
“That’s what it’s always been about for me,” Gilgeous-Alexander said about his quest to win a title. “It’s not even about anything else. From the owner to the GM to the coach, everybody wants to win. And that’s all that matters.
“I’m no different. (Thunder owner) Clay Bennett wants to win. (Thunder general manager) Sam Presti wants to win. They want to do everything in their power to help this team win. And that’s all I try to do.”
Zach Beeker/NBAE via Getty Images
Making matters more challenging, Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder entered Game 4 down 2-1 to the Nuggets. The Canadian missed 15 of 22 shots during a 113-103 Game 3 loss in overtime on May 9.
While the pressures of Game 4 and struggles of Game 3 were in Gilgeous-Alexander’s mind, the calm-under-pressure fashion aficionado was even-keeled about it all.
“I live with my experiences,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I didn’t make shots when I should have. But I didn’t shy away from the moment. That’s what it’s really about. You can’t always control the makes and misses. Michael Jordan has had a game where he didn’t close and he’s the best ever.
“If he can do that, why can’t I? You roll with the punches. You try to get better looks than they can. You try to make those shots.”
Gilgeous-Alexander certainly gets a lot of his athleticism from his mother, Charmaine Gilgeous, a former track star for Antigua and Barbuda. More than 30 years before her son competed for Canada in the 2024 Paris Olympics, she ran the women’s 400 meters at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. She was also a five-time All-American at the University of Alabama.
But when Gilgeous-Alexander called his mom to wish her a Happy Mother’s Day on Sunday morning, his mom and dad stayed true to their usual mindset. They did not offer words of athletic wisdom. Instead, they let the Thunder star figure it out on his own rather than adding pressure.
“They don’t hype me up or turn me up for basketball games,” Gilgeous-Alexander said in the press conference when asked by Andscape about his mother. “No matter what happens, she is going to love me. I guess that gives me the ability to go out there and not really care what happens.
“The people that matter most in my life are going to treat me the same way no matter what happens out there. That gives me the ability to just (focus on) my work, whatever happens, and be able to put a smile on my face.”
AP Photo/David Zalubowski
Entering the fourth quarter on Sunday, the Nuggets had a 69-63 lead in an ugly game on offense for both teams. Gilgeous-Alexander entered the fourth with 16 points, six rebounds and five assists, but the rest of Oklahoma City’s starters were a combined 9-for-35 entering the final quarter. The entire starting five was also a combined 2-for-19 from 3-point range entering the final frame.
Jokic said the Nuggets were keying on stopping Gilgeous-Alexander in the fourth.
“We were trying to give him different looks,” said Jokic, who had 22 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. “He’s a great player. We (wanted to do) like we did the first game, helping maybe CB (Nuggets guard Christian Braun), Russ (Westbrook) or whoever was on the ball, just giving (Gilgeous-Alexander) extra attention and make him think about it a little more.”
In the final 5:30 of the fourth, Gilgeous-Alexander took over to seal the game like a baseball closer. He made two free throws with 5:28 remaining to give the Thunder a 79-76 lead. Gilgeous-Alexander nailed the Thunder’s two next baskets on mid-range jumpers to take an 83-78 lead with 4:29 remaining. The 26-year-old’s assist to struggling Thunder forward Jalen Williams on a four-point play gave the Thunder an 86-80 lead with 3:01 remaining. And Gilgeous-Alexander’s driving layup with 2:22 remaining gave the Thunder an 88-81 advantage and sealed the game.
Gilgeous-Alexander acknowledged that he made a point to be aggressive offensively to lock up the victory.
“This is what you live for. This is what you play basketball for. There is nothing better than this. All the summer work. All the training. The 82 games in the season. It’s all for this,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.
Said Jokic: “He’s an amazing player. He was really good tonight.”
The young Thunder, averaging 24 years of age, have found their way out of their first major adversity of the season to even this series. For Oklahoma City, the expectation is to go further to compete for an elusive title. Gilgeous-Alexander said he is feeling a “do or die” emotion with each playoff game and is expecting that “from here on out.”
With as much weight on his back as any star remaining in the NBA playoffs, the face of the Thunder appears to have the right mindset to try to conquer what’s next.
“With me being the head of the snake, I wear the robe when we win,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We win, I help the team win. We lose, I’m probably the reason why we lose. I roll with the punches. This season, we’ve been able to do a lot more winning than losing. We have to keep that going…
“All I can do is live in the present. And that’s why my team, as well as myself, were able to get the ‘W’ tonight because we were able to stay in the present.”
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By: Marc J. Spears
Title: ‘This is what you live for’: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander embracing challenge for Oklahoma City Thunder
Sourced From: andscape.com/features/this-is-what-you-live-for-shai-gilgeous-alexander-embracing-challenge-for-oklahoma-city-thunder/
Published Date: Mon, 12 May 2025 15:48:35 +0000
