With a matchup against the injury-riddled Sixers on Wednesday, the Thunder have chosen to give Most Valuable Player candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander a break. The team has announced that SGA won’t play, listing rest as the reason, ESPN relays. It won’t impact Gilgeous-Alexander’s eligibility for the MVP — he’s already played 66 games, one more than needed to qualify for postseason awards.
Jalen Williams and Luguentz Dort are also out due to hip injuries while Isaiah Hartenstein (back) and Cason Wallace (shoulder) are listed as questionable.
We have more from the Northwest Division:
- Speaking of Dort, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault told The Oklahoman’s Joel Lorenzi (Twitter link) that he deserves consideration for defensive awards such as All-Defensive Team and Defensive Player of the Year. “I think his time has come for that. I think he’ll get that recognition this year. … we have the best defense in the league statistically and he’s anchored that the entire season,” Daigneault said. “The amount of 30-point games we’ve given up is the lowest in the league by any metric. He’s guarding most of those guys.” Dort has appeared in 62 games and needs to play three more games to qualify for those awards.
- Forward Deni Avdija admits he was blindsided when Washington traded him to the Trail Blazers. “It was nighttime at my place (in Israel), and I woke up. I saw I got traded, and it was very hard for me,” he told Josh Robbins of The Athletic. “All the friendships that I had with the guys there, the city, the fans — it all just disappeared in a second. But everything’s for the good. I feel like I found a nice home in Portland.” Avdija has ramped up his production this month, averaging 20.9 points, 9.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in March. “We’ve let him have a lot more responsibility with the ball, and he keeps proving to get better and better at it,” Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said. “He’s like a one-man fast break when he gets the ball. Some of these things, I didn’t even know about when we got him, because we only played him twice a year, so I didn’t know that much. But he’s been a pleasant surprise. The fire that he plays with, I think, takes our team to another level.”
- Jazz coach Will Hardy has given Walker Kessler the green light to shoot three-pointers. “I’m very, very appreciative of him to give me the opportunity to work on it,” Kessler told Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune. “And I know, and I believe in myself to know that I can do that. I need to get back in the rhythm of how to do it, because it’s been a long time since I’ve really done it in volume.” Kessler, who will be rested against the Wizards on Wednesday, has taken 11 outside shots in his last two appearances but knocked down just one.
So if OKC is loaded with literal stars such as Dort, Holmgren, Williams, Hartenstein, Wiggins, Wallace and Joe, how is SGA “most” valuable” to his loaded team, which can clearly cook without him?
If Curry wasn’t MVP on the GSW teams he led to titles, SGA shouldn’t be considered either. Can’t have your cake and eat it too. GSW was “too loaded” for Curry to be considered MVP, where’s that same energy for SGA here???
Stephen Curry is a two time MVP winner
Yes, I of all people know this, my point you are ignoring is that Stephen Curry has been the most valuable player on his team almost every year he has been active.
Curry should have at least 4 MVPs.
Ignore him, lol he literally stated “If Curry wasn’t MVP on the GSW teams he led to titles”.
2015 NBA Champions – Golden State Warriors
2015 NBA MVP – Stephen Curry
2016 73-9 choke job
2016 NBA MVP Stephen Curry
I’d like “Silly things that kids say these days for attention” for $500 Alex.
Leads the league in points and #3 in steals. And curry has won MVPs. I wouldn’t consider Dort, holmgren(who’s been hurt most the year) and others the same as career Klay, Dray and KD.. seems like a reach and you know it.
^ I’m “reaching” about a 55-12 team, everyone. HAHAHAH
Check out this joker!!!! @CoachJB do you know ball? Or are you just trolling, and you know it? Clearly you are just saying this to rile me up, you have no point, Chet is better than Klay, so to the mute party for you. Also all these OKC guys are under 25, you are using recency bias.
YDKB.
Ignore him, lol he calls that Isaiah Joe a “star”. He calls Cason Wallace a “star”.
But hold up, Who was the guy who played with KD when he was in virtuoso his prime? Who played with Klay who is the best catch and shoot guy in the history of this league? Draymond a first ballot HOF and all time defensive team based on some pundits list.
Yeah…Curry played with only bums I forget. No matter what the wording is, you’ll never rewrite history.
SGA is super clutch and the most consistent player on the Thunder. Williams is the next most consistent. He also usually has a wider variety of stats every game. However, SGA is clearly the engine of that team. Just think back to before he was healthy and playing.
Chet has replaced SGA in terms of all that, when healthy. I would argue SGA hasn’t been “super clutch” all the time, only vs bad teams.
If you are saying “most valuable to his team” and if the team is stacked, then it should be impossible for the best player on the best overall team to win MVP. This is my main point. Curry should have 5 MVPs if we are using SGA’s season this year.
Jokic on the other hand, turns the Nuggets from top 4 to barely .500. The recent win vs the Warriors aside (lost due to bad coaching by Kerr), Jokic has been 100x more valuable to the Nuggets than SGA has for OKC.
Utah is going to….. n no no. I should say Danny is going all out for Cooper. Bottom three have best odds. So expect Danny to navigate Jazz there. As of Now they have same wins as the Wizards. The team who seems to own the #1 pick every year.
Sad teams …….
Deni finally playing up to his potential at 24 yrs old. Upside needs time to become real talent.
Thunder youth is still a hurdle they must get over in playoffs. With Chet and IHart they have the size and depth to do it. SGA at 26 is primed for a run. This could be their year.
Not beating Celtics or Cavs imo.
What are you even talking about? The Pistons had held the worst record for 3 straight seasons before this one and the Rockets before them. The Wizards haven’t had a #1 pick this century…no team has had repeat #1 picks since the ‘16-17 Sixers either.
Wizards have been tanking since 2019. You understand that. How long do you think tanking should be done. 3 yrs or ten years. Every move they’ve made since 2019 has been to tank.
Wizards had john wall first overall in 2010.
The wizards are very much improved vs previous years with young talent. Utah and raptors are clearly tanking (Barnes sits last 8 mins of a close game the other night). The league will take notice and the wizards should get a good pick regardless maybe #1. OKC needs one more veteran scorer imo in the offseason to complete the puzzle. They are young and it shows in the playoffs
15-52 worst in NBA. Tanking for Coopet ….
Last year tanked for Sarr. Got lucky he didn’t want to go to Hawks. Record 15-67 gee Pistons beat them out 14-68. 2022-23 6th worst record in NBA. 2021-22 10th worst record in NBA.
TEAM REC
1 Pistons 301-495
2 Magic 324-478
3 Hornets 327-468
4 Wizards 331-468
Last 10 years worst record teams. Like I said every year……..
after this year Hornets and Wizards move up lol 1 and 2.
Worst record doesn’t equate tanking.
Yeah OK ….. worst team in last ten years. Doesn’t tank. Yeah we got it. Now go wait for Copper to call.
Judging a team for going for a potential generational talent is hardly a “sad” team. These tanking teams know this and can’t really be judged the same as teams that are always at the bottom or always stuck in the middle.
I credit a team like Utah for trying something different for once. The last time they had the #1 pick it had already been traded to the Lakers. That pick was Magic Johnson.
Of course, this was literally when the team was brand new in their new market. They had limited funds and were just trying to stay afloat and make payroll. They also had to trade Dominique as well. That was a sad team, but understandable.
I’d say the Wizards are also trying something new. They traded for Middleton — an all-star talent from the Bucks. Sure, he’s not healthy much these days. However, the Wizards have been winning a lot more lately. Could be an upward trend from here on out.
Warriors won without a top 5 pick. Celtics picked 3rd twice and nailed their pick. You have to nail the picks you get. OKC nails them. Chet is a no.2 but they play well without him.
Pick number doesnt mean anything with regards to winning games.
FankenStein ……. has gone thru 16 Curry dolls by now. He can’t have a conversation about Curry without his doll up his ummmm …. Much less a debate. There isn’t a sane BB fan or so called BB expert in the world. Who doesn’t have SGA or Jokic as a clear MVP. Considering SGA is 1st team D and 1st team O this year. He probably wins it.
The Jimmy Butler experience is going well for the Golden State Warriors. Since the former Philadelphia 76ers star went out West, he’s helped Golden State turn a potentially disappointing season into having them looking like a real threat with a 40-29 record.
Jimmy Butler is the fastest player in Warriors franchise history to record 100+ REB & 100+ AST.
Who’s the real Warriors MVP. Go look up Warriors record before and after Jimmy trade.
That could also be a mentality shift in the locker room. Sometimes all it takes is one big trade to change the outlook of every player on a team.
Butler is playing that first year Iggy role. Iggy was Finals MVP that year. Curry, on the other hand, was the overall MVP. Which player does the opposing team double team the most?
Butler is better than Iggy. And it just shows why No One on Warriors…… no one. Is in MVP conversation. No one on Warriors this year is close to 2way star SGA. Not a conversation lol.
You can’t be an NBA fan if you think otherwise.
Iggy then is close to Butler now. Iggy was a primary scorer on his old team. Just not asked to score as much. He also was clutch on both ends in the playoffs.
Butler is clutch but getting older, so he’s not as fast as he used to be. He’s a better shot creator than Iggy, but both are/were productive.
Both desperately needed on their Warriors’ teams. This Warriors roster is much weaker than Iggy’s team so Butler is needed to do more.
Wizards started the tank after trading Beal and getting new management. No way they have done the same like Utah and other teams. This is literally year 2(1 year and 20 games to go) of the tank. They were trying to win and finally gave in trading Beal and others.
The Jazz had a shot to make the play-in the last two years. Then the second half of the season they decided to tank instead. This is the first year they’ve tanked all season. It’s also the first time they’ve been bad enough to get a top 3 pick in many years.
Washington just hasn’t shaken the losing stigma cuz they haven’t made the playoffs recently. Too many people only look at recent events cuz they’re too lazy to look up actual history. It’s human nature, it seems.