Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the
Thunder becomes the 14th player to win back-to-back NBA MVPs
[May 18, 2026]
By TIM REYNOLDS
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — He’s the best player on the best team. And the
voters say he’s the best player in the league, too.
Again.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City
Thunder won the NBA’s Most Valuable Player on Sunday for the second
consecutive year. He became the 18th player to win at least two MVP
awards and the 14th to win them in back-to-back fashion.
“Basketball's obviously a team sport,” Gilgeous-Alexander said
Sunday night in a celebration at the Thunder practice facility,
surrounded by teammates — all in new Burberry trenchcoats, a gift
from the now two-time MVP. “All the numbers, all the accolades,
everything that I do on the court, if we won 10 games I wouldn't be
in this conversation. So, thank you guys so much. I love you guys.”
The win for Gilgeous-Alexander, who is Canadian, marks the eighth
consecutive time that the NBA’s MVP was born outside the U.S. The
run started with Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo (born in Greece,
of Nigerian descent) in 2019 and 2020, then Denver’s Nikola Jokic
(Serbia) in 2021 and 2022, Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid (born in
Cameroon but has since become a U.S. citizen) in 2023 and Jokic
again in 2024.
And in 2025 and 2026, SGA is the MVP. The coats were just one part
of the massive haul of presents Gilgeous-Alexander shared with
teammates Sunday; there were personalized golf bags, gift baskets
and very pricey watches — which he handed to each teammate.
“Who he is has never changed,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.
“I think he’s touched up the edges on his game and on his leadership
and on his perspective, just like anybody else that’s coming of
age.”
Jokic was second and San Antonio’s star French center Victor
Wembanyama placed third.
Gilgeous-Alexander got 83 of a possible 100 first-place votes. Jokic
received 10 and Wembanyama got five. Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles
Lakers was fourth in the voting and Cade Cunningham of the Detroit
Pistons was fifth.
Cunningham got two first-place votes — the first by a U.S.-born
player since 2021.
Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics was sixth, and Kawhi Leonard of
the Los Angeles Clippers and Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland
Cavaliers tied for seventh with one fifth-place vote apiece.
International players went 1-2-3 in the voting for the fifth
straight season.
— Last season the order was Gilgeous-Alexander, Jokic and
Antetokounmpo.
— In 2024, it was Jokic, then Gilgeous-Alexander and Doncic
(Slovenia) of Slovenia.
— In 2023, it was Embiid, then Jokic, then Antetokounmpo.
— In 2022, it was Jokic, then Embiid, then Antetokounmpo.
“So many NBA players don't get opportunity,” Gilgeous-Alexander
said. “Who knows where I'd be without it.”
Gilgeous-Alexander and Wembanyama will face off Monday night when
the Thunder and Spurs open Game 1 of the Western Conference finals
in Oklahoma City. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is expected at
Monday’s game to formally present Gilgeous-Alexander with a trophy
for the third time in 12 months — the MVP award last May, the NBA
Finals MVP award last June, and now this.
[to top of second column] |
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, center, poses
with teammates Jalen Williams, left, Isaiah Hartenstein, second from
left, Chet Holmgren, center back, Jaylin Williams, second from
right, and Jared McCain, right, in Burberry trench coats bought by
Gilgeous-Alexander during a news conference after he was named the
NBA basketball MVP, Sunday, May 17, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP
Photo/Nate Billings)
Jokic not winning the award continues an odd trend:
those who average a triple-double, often thought of as the holy
grail of in-game accomplishment, almost never win MVP.
Jokic had the seventh instance of a player finishing a season
averaging a triple-double — at least 10 points, 10 assists and 10
rebounds per game — by putting up 27.7 points, a league-best 12.9
rebounds and a league-best 10.7 assists per game.
It wasn’t good enough for MVP. Russell Westbrook averaged a
triple-double four times and won MVP only once in those years. Oscar
Robertson averaged a triple-double in 1961-62; he didn’t win MVP
that season. And now, Jokic has done it twice — with no MVPs to show
for it, though he has won the award on three other occasions.
Gilgeous-Alexander insists that he doesn't play for individual
honors. He plays for team trophies.
“The way things are run in this organization and this city, it
breeds success," Gilgeous-Alexander said. “It's no coincidence.”
The MVP win is Gilgeous-Alexander’s second major individual award
this season; he was also voted the league’s Clutch Player of the
Year by an overwhelming margin — he got 96 of 100 first-place votes
in that balloting, paying tribute to how great his performances tend
to be in the final five minutes of close games.
Then again, he’s pretty good no matter how much time is on the
clock.
Gilgeous-Alexander was second in the league with 31.1 points per
game, second only to Doncic and his 33.5-point average. He also
extended his NBA-record streak of regular season games with at least
20 points to 140 and counting; it’ll carry into next season as well.
He’s delightfully boring — one of the few mid-range specialists in
the game, someone who excels at drawing fouls, isn’t a look-at-me
type and gives some of the most thoughtful answers of anyone in the
league. Emotions aren’t worth his time; staying calm is always his
preferred move.
And he believes in the Thunder way, that the sum of the parts is the
only real key to winning.
“Some of it is just luck," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "As an NBA
player, you have no control over other grown men in this business
and I’m just lucky enough to be surrounded by great human beings,
from the front office, coaching staff, to the guys that I play on
the court with every night. We all want to see the next man win and
do whatever it takes ultimately to win. We have that common goal.
And yeah, I can’t take credit for that. It’s more than me, it’s
bigger than me.”
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