OKC Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Holds Commanding Lead in MVP Straw Poll

Oklahoma City’s superstar seems to have the NBA’s MVP award all but locked up.

Mar 10, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) defends a drive by Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) during the second half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City has dominated the NBA headlines for most of the season behind dominance and star power. This small market squad has taken the league by storm, with a chance to be the third team in NBA history to reach the 70-win mark.

Outside of the sheer team dominance, Oklahoma City’s superstar has held a permanent spot in the season’s headlines, too. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is having one of the best seasons from a guard in league history and is doing so with ultra efficiency. Gilgeous-Alexander’s stats through April are comparable to Michael Jordan’s.

With Nikola Jokic’s video game numbers all season long, one might think the MVP award belongs in Denver. But Gilgeous-Alexander’s total impact on the floor and contributions to winning basketball has given him a leg up. The race was tight over the first half of the season, but shockingly, Gilgeous-Alexander has pulled away. Despite Jokic’s best efforts, SGA appears to be running away with it.

In ESPN’s latest and final straw poll, where insiders voted for the rightful MVP, it wasn’t even close. Out of 100 NBA insiders polled, Gilgeous-Alexander held 77 first place votes.

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“If the results from our final straw poll are accurate — for each of the past five seasons, they have been — Gilgeous-Alexander will claim his first MVP award,” Tim Bontemps wrote. “And in a poll that mirrors the league's official voting and was conducted over a 24-hour period Sunday and Monday, Gilgeous-Alexander claimed 77 of 100 first-place votes.

“Gilgeous-Alexander is on pace to win his first scoring title at 32.9 points per game for a Thunder team that enters Wednesday night's game against the Detroit Pistons with a 63-12 record. OKC needs to win out to join the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls and the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors as the only teams in NBA history to win 70 or more games in a regular season.”

It would’ve taken a historical season to rob Jokic of an MVP award considering he is averaging 29.7 points, 10.2 assists, and 12.8 rebounds per game. But Gilgeous-Alexander has been up for the challenge and more. He’s pouring in 32.9 points per game on 52.2% shooting with All-NBA caliber defense. He’s the reason many consider this Thunder team to be historically good, and ultimately, he’s the main catalyst behind why Oklahoma City is 16.5 games ahead of Denver in the standings.

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