Late in the third quarter at Paycom Center, 'MVP' chants rang out from the stands. Then, with around two minutes left in the fourth, they rang out again. Then the stadium erupted. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had just sunk a game-winning 3-pointer to send the Denver Nuggets packing in one of the most tightly-contested games of the entire regular season.
As his teammates stormed the court, the chants grew louder and more rhythmic, filling the atmosphere of the arena as the Thunder celebrated their victory.
'M-V-P'. 'M-V-P'. 'M-V-P'.
Fanbases are prone to award this chant well before it's deserved, even for the least significant of victories. But Gilgeous-Alexander, with his performance on Monday night, did more than reassert the Thunder's dominance to the league at large.
He may very well have sealed the race for the Most Valuable Player Award.
There's no way around it— Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the MVP
In their matchup against the Denver Nuggets on Feb. 27, Gilgeous-Alexander had his first opportunity to close this debate. But his lack of impact in the fourth quarter and overtime, compared to Nikola Jokic's sublime performance, muddied the waters considerably.
Of course that game, like many others, deserves a caveat. Gilgeous-Alexander was making his return after being sidelined for over three weeks with an abdominal strain.
Oklahoma City wasn't at full health last night either, but Gilgeous-Alexander was clearly at the top of his game. Through nearly 39 minutes on the court, he posted 35 points, nine rebounds, and a career-high 15 assists. He was, in short, absolutely unstoppable.
Jokic did not have a bad game by any stretch of the imagination. On paper, his stat-line even rivals Gilgeous-Alexander's.
But with both Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein out, Oklahoma City was fighting an uphill battle. Both Jokic and Aaron Gordon were able to find their mismatches consistently throughout the night, capitalizing upon the Thunder's lack of size and working their way to the rim.
Gilgeous-Alexander, meanwhile, had the full health and intensity of Denver's defense focused upon him. He still dominated.
You can argue over completeness or foul-baiting or whatever other talking point you want to throw in there. The truth of the matter is that Gilgeous-Alexander is a more dominant scoring presence, and the more important player, on the best team in the NBA. He proved that easily on Monday night.
He is, by virtually any measure, the MVP.