With apologies to Steve Nash, SGA is doing historic issues for surging Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder
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Steve Nash might need a pair of well-deserved MVP awards, however Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is presently having the most effective season by a Canadian participant in NBA historical past.
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The Toronto Raptors will get an up shut have a look at the Hamilton native’s brilliance on Sunday once they go to the surging Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder.
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Nearly as good as he was final season when he completed fifth in MVP voting and fourth in scoring, Gilgeous-Alexander has been even higher in 2023-24. He’s led the Thunder from a plucky, however nonetheless under .500 group a yr in the past to a legit title contender with the second-best report within the NBA.
Gilgeous-Alexander presently ranks third in league scoring (31.3 factors per recreation), first in steals, second in worth over alternative participant, third in field plus/minus and participant effectivity, 14th in assists, and is tops in win shares. Already unstoppable, he constructed on a outstanding summer season, which noticed him propel Canada to the bronze medal on the FIBA World Cup and has added stronger defence and higher capturing to his recreation. Since Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo have already received two MVP awards apiece (profitable three has confirmed extraordinarily troublesome, solely eight gamers have ever performed it) and with Joel Embiid, final yr’s winner, now unlikely to satisfy the brand new video games performed threshold, Gilgeous-Alexander has a much better shot on the award than you’d assume. Voters love good storylines, and the Thunder skipping a few years on the observe from rising however mediocre, to actual contenders, with Gilgeous-Alexander including new layers to his brilliance, may rule the day. Particularly contemplating Jokic and Antetokounmpo’s previous wins.
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In 2004-05, Nash benefitted from an identical storyline as Gilgeous-Alexander’s this yr when he took the Phoenix Suns from afterthought to championship menace, full with probably the most harmful offence within the league. He carried it over the subsequent yr too and have become a uncommon back-to-back MVP winner. Taking nothing away from Nash, who’s a Corridor of Famer who helped change the sport and take it to the place it’s now, the place offence is miles forward of defence, with the ground unfold like by no means earlier than, he by no means had numbers like Gilgeous-Alexander’s. Nash didn’t rating 20 a recreation, not to mention greater than 30. He additionally wasn’t a optimistic on defence, whereas Gilgeous-Alexander is a menace, main in each steals and deflections per recreation. Plus whereas the previous Kentucky guard is taking part in alongside some future all-stars in Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams, Nash had assist from precise All-NBA gamers like Amare Stoudemire and Shawn Marion, amongst others.
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That’s why we’d argue Gilgeous-Alexander is within the midst of the most effective NBA marketing campaign by a Canadian but. He was named Postmedia’s male athlete of the yr, earned the identical honours from the Canadian Press and the Northern Star Award as Canada’s prime athlete by a panel of journalists. But when he wins MVP and leads Canada to a different medal, this time on the Olympics, subsequent summer season, he’d be a deserving repeat winner for every of these awards. It’s all throughout the realm of chance, given no one has been capable of finding an on-court reply for Gilgeous-Alexander.
The Raptors will strive on Sunday and, properly, good luck to them, after they simply gave up 135 factors to the Houston Rockets. Whereas 10 groups have been worse than Toronto defensively this season, that quantity shrinks to solely three over the past 15 video games.
In seven profession conferences in opposition to Toronto Gilgeous-Alexander has shot 55% from the sector. There’s little purpose to assume he’ll handle worse than that come Sunday.
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