During Sunday's afternoon battle of the MVPs, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander managed to reign supreme over Nikola Jokic as he spearheaded the charge toward the OKC Thunder's 127-103 win against the Denver Nuggets.
From dropping his third consecutive 40-plus point game to stuffing the rest of the stat sheet with 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks, once again the Oklahoma City star proved to be a jack-of-all-trades type of talent and one who can impact the game in every which way.
Interestingly enough, no one seemed to be more impressed with Gilgeous-Alexander's all-around efforts following the contest than his direct competitor for the Michael Jordan Trophy in Jokic, as he talked up the guard's sensational abilities to reporters during his postgame locker room Interview.
Nikola Jokic reveals what he appreciates about Thunder star's game
"He doesn't complicate [things]. He really knows what he knows and he doesn't complicate. He's a really good defender and shot-blocker. He doesn't try to do too much. He's feeling the team and he's really good for them," Jokic said of Gilgeous-Alexander.
What's easily the most noteworthy takeaway from Jokic's comments on the Thunder star is that he specifically highlighted his defensive efforts.
Though Gilgeous-Alexander may generate the most attention with his offensive excellence, as he leads the association in points per game and total points with 32.9 and 2,038, respectively, perhaps lost in the hype are his skills on the less glamorous side of the ball.
Through 62 games played, the 26-year-old ranks second in the league in total steals (112), second among guards in total blocks (65), and first among starters with a minimum of 40 games under their belt in defensive rating (104.6).
On top of this, there's a strong case to be made that his defensive abilities have played a significant role in his otherworldly offensive production this season, as he's generated a league-leading 328 points directly off of his league-leading 785 forced turnovers.
Despite all this, however, over the last few weeks, it seems the pollsters have soured a bit on the Thunder star's favoritism to win the 2025 MVP award, as one of NBA.com's latest updates saw Jokic usurp SGA atop the leaderboard.
Since then, Gilgeous-Alexander has responded by playing at a scorched-earth rate which, in turn, has seemingly swayed the voters and odds-makers back in his favor -- at least, for the time being.
Regardless of the MVP race's ultimate outcome, it's undeniable that the Thunder centerpiece is in the conversation for being the game's best two-way baller. Ahead of Monday's rematch (7 p.m. (CDT) tip-off), Nuggets star Nikola Jokic only added more strength to such a claim.