Former Kentucky basketball star, and currently Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a terrific season. It was an MVP quality season. Unfortunately, Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic also had an MVP type of season and took the award home.
Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 30.1 points per game this season, which was third in the league. He also put up 6.2 assists and 5.5 rebounds per contest while getting 2 steals per game on defense.
Jokic, meanwhile, was within an assist per game of averaging a triple-double. He posted 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 9 assists per game. This is his third MVP trophy.
As for Gilgeous-Alexander, he is one of the NBA’s brightest young stars at just 25 years old. The former Kentucky basketball star is likely still improving in parts of his game.
The NBA is loaded with talented former Wildcats. Several of them are definitely capable of winning an MVP at some point. He didn’t get it this time, but it’s a near certainty that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will be right back in the discussion soon enough.