Nov 11, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) defends a drive by Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden (1) during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
As Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s lead in the MVP race grows, count NBA players as a totality who support him over Nikola Jokic to win the prestigious award.
As the LA Clippers prepare to face the Denver Nuggets in Round 1 of the 2025 NBA playoffs, James Harden told Fox Sports’ Rachel Nichols he believes Gilgeous-Alexander should win the MVP award.
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“I said, ‘Who’s the best player?’ He said, ‘No question, Jokic is the best player.’ But even he said, ‘All the players we want to see Shai win MVP because of the season he had and the winning,'” Nichols said. “I think that really factors in for them more than maybe some people on the outside that look at stats.”
That’s a solid line of thinking. And the early voting results reflect it. The Thunder had a historic 68-14 record and captured the NBA’s best point differential in the league’s history. Pair that with Gilgeous-Alexander’s superb-efficient 32-point campaign, it’s easy to build up a case for him to dethrone the three-time winner for the award.
Harden knows a thing or two about MVP races. He was prominently featured in the discussion for most of his time on the Houston Rockets. He finally won it in 2018 as his Rockets had 65 wins paired with his 30-point campaign. Sounds familiar?
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Gilgeous-Alexander and prime Harden share several similarities. Both are consistent 30-point scorers with their production and the engine of their respective teams’ offenses. The players backing up Gilgeous-Alexander to win the award will show his peers were on the right side of history.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: James Harden believes players want Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to win MVP
