The Denver Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder split their MVP-centric matchups on Sunday and Monday.
Nikola Jokic continued to impress, going for 30/16/9, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was steady with 33/6/6. Both stars are sensational in their own right. They get it done in different ways. Jokic is a 7-foot point guard who does it all on offense. He elevates everyone in Colorado with his team-first attitude and MacBook processing.
SGA is from the Dwyane Wade school of slashing and foul drawing. He's also cut from the Kobe Bryant tough midrange school. SGA's pace with the ball in his hands is one of one, and he gets wherever whenever.
It's funny how the slashing, tough shot-making, and insane handle have been swept under the rug, and he's been reduced to a "free throw merchant."
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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander can't be guarded one-on-one — fouling is the best defense on him at times
Denver Nuggets wing Christian Braun (who should be the MIP favorite) pushed back against the free throw merchant narrative that's plagued SGA this year. "He's good at everything; it's not just the fouls," said Braun.
Braun is one of the stronger younger defenders in the league, and he even had his hands full Sunday afternoon. SGA repeatedly waltzed to the paint like no one was in front of him. That's what great players do; they make it look easy.
SGA leads the league in drives by a mile. His 1240 to 1111 drives lead over send place Jalen Brunson is set to extend as Brunson is out for at least two weeks. Even healthy, Brunson, or anyone else for that matter, wasn't coming close to driving how Shai is. Free throws are always the conversation around the MVP favorite in Oklahoma City, but when the paint is your permanent address, it makes sense that his FT rate is higher than others.
Funnily enough, while SGA leads the league in drives by a country-wide margin, his FTr isn't the highest in the league. Some of the guys on this list don't play much, but SGA is still behind All-Star and probably third in the MVP race, James Harden and Giannis Antetokounmpo. The argument that one doesn't like "the way" SGA draws free throws is subjective. On that front, I'd argue that a narrative has been created, and confirmation bias is heavily at play.
SGA snaps his head back and wails for calls like most superstars do. He will take advantage if your arms are extended in the cookie box.
We see arguments that he does it more than others, but that's also confirmation bias at work. A compilation over a season could be made for anything. There is a side-by-side clip of Killian Hayes playing like James Harden, after all.
When SGA gets defenders in the air and jumps into them like Dwyane Wade made a killing of or takes advantage of their arms, it goes viral. When Anthony Edwards does the same thing, crickets.
That's the game right now. SGA has reached that sweet status of "he's good, but what's he done in the playoffs?" He can quiet some of the noise with an elite playoff run, but Jayson Tatum will tell you even that doesn't always shut the naysayers up.
Instead of complaining about things most league stars do, I will appreciate Shai's All-Time season. 33 points per game with a 64 true shooting percentage isn't normal stuff
The way he slips and slides by defenders like the slitheriest snake is dangerous. His venomous jump shot from mid-range (sometimes 3) is lethal. You have to respect his jumper, or he'll blow right by you — he'll probably do that anyway.
There's a reason beyond flopping why he gets to the line frequently (not more frequently than any of the superstars from the past). He's simply unguardable in one-on-one and sometimes two-on-one situations, and stopping him from seeing the ball go in the hoop is the defense's only hope. Let's respect the greatness we're witnessing. Shai is having a Michael Jordan or Kobe scoring season.
Shai has scored at least 20 points in 59 straight games. KD holds the record with 72 straight. SGA notched 40 points this season while taking five FTs. This is SGA's third year in a row averaging 30 points per game (only MJ and Harden have done that), and we're boiling his greatness down to "foul baiting." Count me out in that hate-fest. I'll appreciate what I'm witnessing.