The rise to superstardom for OKC Thunder cornerstone Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been incredibly steady over these past several years.
Climbing the ranks from All-Star to All-NBA and, now, having two straight MVPs and an NBA Championship under his belt, the point guard has undeniably built up arguably the most compelling case out there to be crowned as the face of the league.
Yet, for some reason, many have refrained from branding him as such because he was simply born outside the USA.
This kind of narrative is completely stuck in the past. Here in 2025-26, it's more than apparent that the NBA is by no means an American institution but, rather, a global one.
The recent MVP win by the Ontario native only further sheds light on this and, frankly, should put such a ridiculous talking point to rest once and for all.
Thunder star extends streak of NBA MVP winners not being from USA
The fact of the matter is that there hasn't been a United States-born recipient of the game's most prestigious individual regular-season honor since James Harden won MVP back in 2018.
Over the first 18 years of the 21 Century, a player born outside of the States had taken home the award on just five occasions, with Tim Duncan (2002 & 2003), Steve Nash (2005 & 2006), and Dirk Nowitzki (2007) serving as the lone recipients.
Over the last 10 seasons, a non-USA native has received the honor 80.0 percent of the time, with the last eight going to such individuals.
Gilgeous-Alexander is the latest example of this ongoing trend, yet, for some reason, it's still being held against him that he's not a native of the country?
Make no mistake about it, Shai is more than deserving of, and, frankly, publicly covets the crown of face of the NBA.
Whether it's the fact that he's already seen as a top-25 player of all-time at just 27 or that he's known to make an effort to stay behind after games to spend time with and sign autographs for fans, the man is everything the NBA could ask for when it comes to who they should want serving as the game's current icon.
Basketball has branched out well beyond Springfield, Massachusetts -- not just into different states but, clearly, different countries as well.
The sooner fans and pundits come to this realization, the sooner a player as righteous as Gilgeous-Alexander can officially be universally recognized as the new face of the NBA.
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