E-Paper
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's NBA MVP vote count: How Thunder star beat Jokic, Wemby
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has added another major milestone to his brilliant Thunder stint
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has added another major milestone to his brilliant Thunder stint after being voted the NBA’s Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive season. According to ESPN, the Oklahoma City superstar edged out another loaded MVP field that included Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama, although the official announcement is scheduled for Sunday evening, at 7:30 PM ET.
The reported win would make Gilgeous-Alexander just the 14th player in NBA history to secure back-to-back MVP awards.
Shai makes history
If confirmed officially, Gilgeous-Alexander will become the first player since Jokic to win consecutive MVP trophies after the Denver Nuggets star accomplished the feat in 2020-21 and 2021-22. He would also become the first guard since Stephen Curry to capture consecutive MVP honors following Curry’s historic run with the Golden State Warriors in 2014-15 and 2015-16.
The 27-year-old continues to cement himself as the face of Oklahoma City’s resurgence after leading the franchise to its first NBA championship last season.
Shai’s numbers powered MVP campaign
Gilgeous-Alexander delivered another dominant regular season statistically, averaging:
31.1 points per game
6.6 assists per game
4.3 rebounds per game
He appeared in 68 games, starting every contest for Oklahoma City.
The Thunder star signed a four-year, $273.3 million supermax contract extension during the offseason, further solidifying his future with the franchise.
Across his NBA career with the Los Angeles Clippers and Thunder, Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged 25.3 points, 5.3 assists and 4.7 rebounds in 530 career games.
Thunder preparing for another title run
Oklahoma City now enters the Western Conference Finals looking to defend last season’s championship.
The Thunder are set to open the series Monday against the San Antonio Spurs, adding even more significance to Gilgeous-Alexander’s MVP recognition.
With Wembanyama emerging into superstardom in San Antonio and Jokic continuing to dominate in Denver, the MVP race once again highlighted the NBA’s elite international talent pool.
How NBA MVP voting works
The NBA MVP award is determined through voting conducted by approximately 100 sportswriters and broadcasters across the United States and Canada.
Each voter submits a ballot ranking their top five MVP candidates.
The league uses a weighted points system:
1st place vote — 10 points
2nd place vote — 7 points
3rd place vote — 5 points
4th place vote — 3 points
5th place vote — 1 point
The player with the highest overall point total wins the MVP award.
The NBA later releases every voter’s ballot publicly for transparency.
What voters usually consider
Although the NBA does not provide a strict official definition for “Most Valuable Player,” several major factors traditionally shape voting trends:
Individual production
Both traditional statistics and advanced analytics heavily influence the race, including scoring averages, efficiency ratings, Win Shares, VORP and PER metrics.
Team success
Players leading top-seeded teams generally receive stronger MVP support, especially if their teams dominate the regular season standings.
Availability
Games played has become an increasingly important factor in recent years, rewarding stars who remain consistently available throughout the season.
