<p>-
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander earns Finals MVP, cements historic season</p>
<p>Field Level MediaJune 23, 2025 at 1:07 AM</p>
<p>Jun 22, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) passes the ball while Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam (43) defends during the first half of game seven of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images (Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images)</p>
<p>Named NBA Finals MVP following Oklahoma City's 103-91 Game 7 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday night, Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has earned the crown jewel of one of the NBA's most decorated seasons at only 26 years old.</p>
<p>Gilgeous-Alexander won the regular-season MVP and Finals MVP this season, becoming the ninth player in league history to accomplish that feat and the first since LeBron James in 2012-13 with the Miami Heat.</p>
<p>"It's hard to believe that I'm part of that group. It's hard to even fathom that I'm that type of basketball player sometimes," Gilgeous-Alexander said after Game 7. " ... I'm just glad and happy that my dreams have been able to come true."</p>
<p>The 6-foot-6 point guard was the clear favorite to win the award if the Thunder captured the championship, averaging 30.3 points, 5.6 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game in the seven-game series.</p>
<p>Gilgeous-Alexander had a tough shooting night (8 for 27 from the field) to close out the series in Game 7, but as he's done all season, he produced from the free-throw line. The league leader in drives made 11 of 12 attempts from the stripe and had his best playmaking performance of the Finals, notching a playoff-career-high 12 assists along with a game-high 29 points.</p>
<p>"Coming off of Game 6, I obviously had a lot more turnovers than assists. That's not a recipe for a win, and I wanted to do whatever it took tonight to get a win," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Whether that was me playing in space, or it was ... some of my teammates open and just trying to make the right basketball play."</p>
<p>With a record 72 points over his first two career Finals games, Gilgeous-Alexander started hot and never looked back. His 34-point performance in Game 2 to prevent a 2-0 Thunder deficit and 35 in Game 4 to avoid falling behind 3-1 kept Oklahoma City step-for-step with a relentless Indiana Pacers team.</p>
<p>The Thunder proved to be equally as tough. They lost consecutive games only twice in the regular season and never lost back-to-back games this postseason.</p>
<p>"We have a team full of competitors, we did what it took this year to be champions, and we deserve this," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "We rose to the moment, here we are."</p>
<p>The Toronto native won regular-season MVP by leading a 68-win Thunder team -- the highest regular-season win total since the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors -- and pacing the league in scoring at 32.7 points per game.</p>
<p>Alexander had among the most efficient volume scoring seasons of any guard in NBA history, posting 51.9/37.5/89.8 shooting splits, and was a solid defensive piece on one of the stingiest defenses in recent league history.</p>
<p>The No. 11 overall pick by the Charlotte Hornets in the 2018 draft, Gilgeous-Alexander was traded on draft night to the Los Angeles Clippers. After his rookie season, the Clippers shipped the Kentucky product to Oklahoma City in a package for Paul George, tipping the first domino in what would become one of the league's most successful rebuilds.</p>
<p>Gilgeous-Alexander was a fringe All-Star caliber player for three seasons, in two of which the Thunder won fewer than 30 games, until he burst into the forefront of the NBA in the 2022-23 season, averaging 31.4 ppg.</p>
<p>Last season, he was the runner-up for MVP while Oklahoma City fell short of a title in a second-round exit.</p>
<p>A year later, Gilgeous-Alexander hoisted the first Larry O'Brien and Finals MVP trophies that Oklahoma City has ever seen.</p>
<p>-- Field Level Media</p>
Source: AOL Sports
Source: AsherMag
Full Article on Source: Astro Blog
#LALifestyle #USCelebrities