Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Chet Holmgren Progressing, Will Be Reevaluated In 3-5 Weeks

Thunder big man Chet Holmgren is continuing to make progress in his recovery from a right iliac wing fracture, according to the club, which announced on Friday that he’ll be reevaluated in approximately three-to-five weeks.

Holmgren suffered the injury, a form of pelvic fracture, on November 10, with Oklahoma City announcing the following day that he would be reevaluated in eight-to-10 weeks. That was approximately nine-and-a-half weeks ago, so an update from the team had been expected around this time.

The Thunder have handled Holmgren’s absence admirably, posting a 26-4 record without him. For most of that time, they’ve started Isaiah Hartenstein at center in place of Holmgren, though Hartenstein has missed some time with health issues of his own — he’s currently on the shelf with a left soleus strain.

Oklahoma City still hasn’t gotten a chance to see Hartenstein, the club’s top offseason free agent addition, on the court at the same time as Rookie of the Year runner-up Holmgren, since the two big men have yet to be healthy at the same time. There’s still hope that will happen at some point before the end of the regular season, but Holmgren’s recovery process will take at least a few more weeks.

Before getting injured in his 10th game of the season, Holmgren had averaged 18.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks in 28.9 minutes per game across nine outings, with a .519/.400/.776 shooting line.

In other Thunder injury news, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is expected to be a game-time decision on Friday vs. Dallas due to a sore right wrist, tweets Christian Clark of The Athletic.

And-Ones: All-Star Voting, New Leagues, Midseason Awards

The third update on fan voting for the All-Star Game has Nikola Jokic, LeBron James and Kevin Durant heading the list of Western Conference frontcourt players, the NBA announced on Thursday (via Twitter). Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Stephen Curry and Luka Doncic have received the most votes among Western Conference backcourt players.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum and Karl-Anthony Towns are the top three vote-getters among Eastern Conference frontcourt players, while LaMelo Ball, Donovan Mitchell and Damian Lillard have the most votes among the conference’s backcourt players.

The fan vote counts for 50 percent regarding All-Star starters. Player voting and a media panel’s selections are weighed at 25 percent apiece. Fan voting ends Monday and the All-Star starters will be revealed on Thursday during a TNT broadcast.

We have more from around the basketball world:

  • Will a new basketball league to challenge the NBA come to fruition? According to Bloomberg.com, a group of investors being advised by Maverick Carter, LeBron’s business partner, is seeking to raise $5 billion from private capital sources to form an international basketball league. James himself is not part of the efforts to form this new league, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. The investors, which includes multiple private equity funds, are looking to form a league consisting of six men’s teams and six women’s teams playing games around the world, Charania adds.
  • Speaking of international games, NBA commissioner Adam Silver confirmed on Shaquille O’Neal’s podcast that discussions have been held regarding a new European league, Eurohoops relays. “One of the things we’ve been discussing is whether, before adding NBA franchises in Europe, there’s an opportunity to create an independent league there. This could leverage the enormous interest in basketball in major European capitals like Paris, London, Berlin, and Madrid— and other major cities that love basketball,” Silver said. Discussions between the NBA and FIBA regarding the proposed league have previously been reported.
  • Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix and Liam McKeone hand out their midseason awards, including Most Valuable Player, Rookie of the Year and Coach of the Year. Mannix chooses Gilgeous-Alexander as his midseason MVP, while McKeone selects Jokic. They also take a look at the highs and lows of the season so far.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander “Comfortable” With Thunder, Wants To Stay In OKC

The top player on the top team in the Western Conference plans to make a long-term commitment to the franchise.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander told reporters on Wednesday that he doesn’t want to play anywhere else. He’s not interested in going to a bigger market, as many of the league’s stars have done in recent years.

“I can only speak for myself. I love Oklahoma City and I can’t see a world where I’m not in Oklahoma City,” he said, as relayed by The Athletic’s Jason Lloyd. “I’m comfortable where I am. I like where I am. I love the people in the organization, love the people around me, and those are the things that matter. I go to work every day with a smile on my face.

“Me personally, the market doesn’t matter. The money doesn’t matter to a certain extent. But as long as I enjoy what I’m doing at a very high level, I love the people that I’m around doing it.”

Gilgeous-Alexander signed a maximum-salary rookie scale extension in 2021. He’s currently in the third season of that five-year, $179.3MM contract.

SGA met the performance criteria to sign a designated veteran (ie. super-max) extension worth 35% of the salary cap when he made All-NBA teams in 2023 and 2024. However, he was ineligible to ink that extension last summer because seven seasons of NBA service are required. This is his seventh season, meaning he’ll be able to sign it in July 2025.

It’s a virtual lock that the franchise will offer him that super-max, which projects to be worth as much as $293MM over four years, beginning in 2027/28.

Gilgeous-Alexander’s statistics this season are closely aligned with last season’s numbers, when he made the All-NBA First Team and finished second in MVP voting. He’s averaging 31.3 points, 6.1 assists, 5.6 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.2 blocks per game for the Thunder, who are 30-6 despite losing their showdown with Eastern Conference-leader Cleveland on Wednesday.

And-Ones: All-Star Voting, NBAGL Standouts, Diamond Sports, Rookies

MVP candidates Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Bucks and Nikola Jokic of the Nuggets are the leading vote-getters in their respective conferences in the first All-Star fan voting results announced by the NBA on Thursday (Twitter link).

Jayson Tatum, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Durant, and LeBron James are the other stars who rank among the top three frontcourt players in their respective conferences. In the backcourt, LaMelo Ball and Donovan Mitchell lead the way in the East, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Doncic are the top vote-getters in the West.

Fan voting counts for 50% of the total to determine All-Star starters, with players and the media each getting 25%. The fan vote will close on January 20.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • What do Trey Burke, T.J. Warren, and Jaylen Nowell have in common? They’re NBA veterans who are thriving this season in the G League and making strong cases for call-ups as the 10-day contract window for 2025 opens on Sunday, Keith Smith of Spotrac writes. Smith and Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter link) also identify some other G League players who deserve to be considered for NBA promotions, with Valley Suns guard Jaden Shackelford topping Murphy’s list.
  • Diamond Sports Group announced on Thursday that it has exited bankruptcy and will be known as Main Street Sports Group going forward, tweets Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. The company that was once $9 billion in debt has reduced that figure to $200MM, Vorkunov adds. Diamond Sports Group’s regional sports networks – once known as Bally Sports and now branded as FanDuel Sports Network – broadcast games locally for 13 NBA teams.
  • Kelly Iko and Sam Vecenie of The Athletic discuss their impressions of some of the notable members of the 2024 rookie class from the Southwest Division, including Spurs guard Stephon Castle, Grizzlies teammates Zach Edey and Jaylen Wells, and Rockets guard Reed Sheppard. Vecenie explains that he’s not worried about Sheppard’s slow start because it’s rare for one-and-done rookies to make an impact for a team like Houston, the West’s No. 3 seed.

And-Ones: 2025, Balance, Expansion, Neto, MVP

In an Insider-only story for ESPN.com, Tim Bontemps lists seven storylines people around the NBA will be monitoring in 2025. Due to their combination of young players, draft assets and a coach (Ime Udoka) that players want to play for, the Rockets are widely viewed as the team to watch the next time a star becomes available on the trade market.

The whole landscape of the league,” an Eastern Conference scout said, “could change based off what they do.”

Although no one actually expects anything to change, since it would require certain teams to vote against their best interests, league sources tell Bontemps that the imbalance of power between the two conferences may see more calls for playoff seedings to be ranked 1-to-16 instead of the traditional format of 1-to-8 in each conference.

League insiders are also keeping a close eye on the Celtics‘ impending sale — specifically how much the team sells for — as a potential bellwether for expansion, according to Bontemps. The cities of Seattle and Las Vegas continue to be mentioned in league circles as possible expansion spots.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Gilgeous-Alexander, Towns Named Players Of The Month

Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns have been named the NBA’s Players of the Month, the league announced on Thursday (via Twitter). Gilgeous-Alexander won the award for the Western Conference, while Towns was the East’s winner.

Gilgeous-Alexander, the West’s reigning Player of the Week, has claimed the monthly award for the second straight time, having also won for games played in October and November. The 26-year-old put up superlative stats in leading Oklahoma City to a 12-1 record last month, averaging 33.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.2 blocks on .563/.366/.910 shooting in 13 games (34.5 minutes per contest).

Winners of 12 straight, the Thunder are off to their best start in franchise history and are currently 27-5, the top seed in the West. Only the 29-4 Cavaliers have a better record.

Towns helped lead the Knicks to a 12-1 record in games he played last month, with New York losing the lone contest he missed. He had an excellent month himself, averaging 23.2 PPG, 14.6 RPG, 3.3 APG and 1.1 BPG on .566/.390/.813 shooting in his 13 appearances (34.6 MPG).

The Knicks, who have won nine straight games, are currently 24-10, the No. 3 seed in the West. They’re a half-game behind Boston for the No. 2 spot.

According to the NBA (Twitter link), the other nominees in the West were Deni Avdija, Shaedon Sharpe, Kyrie Irving, Jaren Jackson Jr., LeBron James, Nikola Jokic, Norman Powell, Alperen Sengun and Victor Wembanyama. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Towns’ teammate Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Haliburton, Tyler Herro, Jalen Johnson, Trae Young, Tyrese Maxey and Donovan Mitchell were nominated in the East.

Thunder Notes: Mitchell, Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren

Thunder two-way player Ajay Mitchell continues to see his role expand. The 6’5” rookie wing has scored in double digits in three of the last five games.

Mitchell was chosen with the No. 38 pick of the draft and acquired in a draft night deal with the Knicks. Oklahoma City heavily scouted Mitchell, who played collegiately for Santa Barbara.

“(GM Sam Presti) loved him from the jump,” coach Mark Daigneault told Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman. “I can remember (Presti), all the way back into last season, he was on the road watching him, and I remember him telling me about him before I ever laid eyes on him.”

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said Mitchell was a revelation in training camp.

“His situation coming into the season, you might not have expected this — I certainly didn’t. But after being with him for the first couple weeks of training camp and preseason, you can see where he’s going with it,” the All-Star guard.

We have more on the Thunder:

  • Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards has already endorsed SGA as the league’s MVP in an interview with ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. The Thunder star scored 40 points in an eight-point victory over Minnesota on Tuesday. “I don’t know if they could give it to [Nikola Jokic] again,” Edwards said. “Yeah, I would say Shai. Yeah, he’s looking like the MVP, man. He was incredible once again tonight. He’s consistent every night. His team gonna give him the ball and just let him rock out every night. It’s nothing to think about. ‘Hey, get Shai the ball and he going to get busy, and then we’re going to figure it out after that.’ I love watching that. It’s incredible, man. If he is keeping him like that, I hope they give [MVP] to him this year for sure. I feel like he should have won it last year, but he’s playing out his mind right now.”
  • Chet Holmgren is itching to get back on the court, Gilgeous-Alexander told Lorenzi (Twitter link). “(Tuesday) he came in the locker room and said that he’s ready to go through shootaround with us. Typical Chet Holmgren. … I can’t imagine the game being taken from me like that. … for him to be on his way back, can only imagine how it feels. To see that smile on his face again, it’s very exciting.” Holmgren is recovering from a pelvic fracture suffered in November. On Nov. 11, he was given a timeline of eight-to-10 weeks for a reevaluation.
  • In case you missed it, Gilgeous-Alexander is the reigning Western Conference Player of the Week. Get the details here.

Gilgeous-Alexander, Maxey Named Players Of The Week

Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been named the NBA’s Player of the Week for the Western Conference, while Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey has won the award for the East, the league announced today (via Twitter).

Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished runner-up for last season’s MVP award, continued his excellent play during the 2024/25 campaign over the past week. In victories over Washington, Indiana, Charlotte and Memphis, he averaged an eye-popping stat line of 35.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.8 steals and 2.5 blocks in 33.6 minutes per game on .630/.409/.970 shooting.

The Thunder, who are off to their best start in franchise history, are currently 26-5, the No. 1 seed in the West. Canadian star Gilgeous-Alexander has yet to miss a game this season.

Maxey put up stellar numbers himself in victories over San Antonio, Boston and Utah, averaging 32.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 8.3 assists and 2.7 steals on .465/.394/.857 shooting in his three appearances (40.7 minutes).

After opening the season with an abysmal 3-14 record, Philadelphia has been gradually climbing up the standings, having won nine of its past 12 games, including three straight. The 76ers are currently, 12-17, the No. 11 seed in the East, a half-game back of No. 9 Chicago.

According to the NBA (Twitter link), the other nominees in the West were Kyrie Irving, Norman Powell, Ivica Zubac, Julius Randle, Austin Reaves and Shaedon Sharpe. Maxey beat out Jalen Brunson, Cade Cunningham, Tyler Herro, De’Andre Hunter, Jalen Johnson, Trae Young and Donovan Mitchell to claim the East’s award.

Community Shootaround: 2024/25 NBA MVP Race

As we relayed on Friday, three-time Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic led the way in the first MVP straw poll conducted by ESPN’s Tim Bontemps for the 2024/25 season. However, while Jokic earned 57 first-place votes from the 100 media members polled by Bontemps, it’s clearly a three-player race at this point.

Jokic totaled 827 total points in the voting, with Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at 678 points and Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo at 643. Gilgeous-Alexander received 24 first-place votes, while Antetokounmpo got 19 — no other player earned a single first-place vote, and Celtics forward Jayson Tatum was the only other player to even claim a second-place vote (he got three).

Plenty could change between now and the end of the regular season, and injury luck is always a factor, but it seems highly likely at this point that one of Jokic, Gilgeous-Alexander, or Antetokounmpo will be named this season’s Most Valuable Player. Here are their cases so far:

Nikola Jokic:

As usual, the Nuggets center has been an advanced-stats star. He leads the NBA in player efficiency rating (31.9), win shares per 48 minutes (.287), box plus/minus (12.8), and value over replacement player (3.0).

Of course, Jokic’s traditional stats look awfully impressive too. His 31.0 points per game would be a career best, as would his league-leading 50.0% mark on three-point attempts. He’s nearly averaging a triple-double, with 13.0 rebounds and 9.8 assists per game.

The main knock against Jokic at this point is that his Nuggets are fighting to stay out of play-in territory — they’re currently tied for sixth in the Western Conference at 14-11. But it’s hard to blame the big man for that modest record. Denver has a +9.7 net rating in his 819 minutes on the court, while their net rating in the 391 minutes he hasn’t played is a brutal -14.3.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander:

Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 30.3 points, 6.2 assists, and 5.5 rebounds per game with a 50.8% field goal percentage, a very strong mark for a guard. He’s also the only player in the NBA who is averaging at least two steals and one block per contest.

The fact that MVPs historically come from teams at or near the top of the standings works in SGA’s favor — his Thunder are 22-5, which is the second-best record in the league and the top mark in the Western Conference. Oklahoma City has a three-game lead in the conference standings on the No. 2 Rockets.

While his supporting cast is certainly stronger than Jokic’s, Gilgeous-Alexander has obviously had a huge hand in OKC’s success. The team has a +15.5 net rating in his 935 minutes and a +1.5 mark in 361 minutes without him on the floor.

The Thunder star also ranks first in the NBA in defensive win shares (2.0) and total win shares (5.4), while placing just behind Jokic in WS/48, BPM, and VORP. His only real weakness is his subpar three-point rate of 33.5% on 6.3 attempts per night.

Giannis Antetokounmpo:

No NBA player has averaged more points per game this season than Antetokounmpo (32.7), who is also among the league leaders in rebounds per game (11.6). The Bucks forward also fills the box score with 6.0 assists and 1.5 blocks per night, along with a career-best field goal percentage of 61.3%.

Giannis is right there with Jokic in terms of PER (31.8) and ranks third behind Jokic and SGA in BPM (9.1) and VORP (2.4). He earns extra points for pulling the Bucks out of an early-season hole, but as a result of that slow start, the team is still just 15-12, fifth in the Eastern Conference. That won’t help his case, so the Bucks will have to keep winning.

Antetokounmpo’s on/off-court numbers are also surprisingly unflattering compared to his top two MVP competitors. Milwaukee’s net rating is essentially the same with him on the court (+1.4) as it is when he’s not playing (+1.3).

We want to know what you think. Which of these three players would you be your MVP pick right now? Which one do you expect to lead the MVP race as the season progresses? Outside of this trio, which player do you think has the best chance to make a run at this season’s MVP award?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

And-Ones: Team Canada, DSJ, 2025 Draft, Kendrick

Canadian players are still dealing with the disappointment of not winning a medal at this year’s Summer Olympics, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Featuring a roster loaded with NBA talent, Team Canada had a chance to reach a milestone for the nation’s basketball program. Instead, they left Paris empty-handed with the realization that the next opportunity is four long years away.

“It’s different once it’s over and you realize that you’re not going to be in that position, not have a chance for four more years,” RJ Barrett said. “Like, that’s a rough part about it, especially when we felt like we had a team that had a great mix. I think we had young guys, but not rookies, you know, and we had guys in their prime or close to their prime, and we had some vets that are still at a good stage in their career. We had the experience, and we had the talent, we got we had the coach. We felt like that was our time, but I think experience, and those type of tournaments is huge.”

The Canadians looked like a legitimate threat to capture the gold after going undefeated in pool play against Greece, Australia and Spain, who were all viewed as medal contenders. But their hopes ended quickly with an 82-73 loss to France in the quarterfinal round. Grange notes that Canada was able to control Victor Wembanyama, holding him to seven points on 2-of-10 shooting with Dillon Brooks guarding him for much of the game, but Guerschon Yabusele and Mathias Lessort led the hosts to victory by combining for 35 points.

“Every year, I get a chance to win an NBA championship,” Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said, “(but it’s only) every four years I get a chance to try to win the Olympics, you know?”

There’s more from around the basketball world:

  • When Dennis Smith Jr. entered the G League player pool, he was expecting to be claimed by the Spurs‘ affiliate, Marc Stein and Jake Fischer write in a Substack column (subscription required). Instead, he wound up with the Bucks‘ affiliate, making his future in the G League less certain, sources tell The Stein Line. Real Madrid reportedly has interest if Smith wants to play in the EuroLeague.
  • Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey are making an impact at Rutgers, but the NBA executives and draft experts who talked to Adam Zagoria of NJ.com believe Duke’s Cooper Flagg remains very likely to be the top pick in 2025.
  • Frank Kendrick, who was part of a championship team with the Warriors during his only NBA season, died this week at age 74, the team announced (via Twitter). Kendrick also won an NIT title at Purdue and was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.