The Oklahoma City Thunder is expected to beat the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Finals, and the impact of Shygilgauss Alexander is more than merely on-court success.
Behind the MVP play of Shy Gilgauss Alexander, the Oklahoma City Thunder is hoping to win the first NBA Finals since 2012 and the first title in franchise history.
Gilgeous-Alexander is easily the best player on the team, but general manager Sam Presti has done an incredible job surrounding SGA, who is of quality and affordable talent.
Building primarily through drafts, the Thunder had many reserve talent to compete with the Indiana Pacers, and everyone on the bench bought for their roles.
The lightning behind the SGA is led by stars Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren. SGA and Holmgren were both stars in college and were highly employed from a young age. Williams and the rest of the supporting cast are new to the spotlight.
They come from a very different background, but Williams can identify with the SGA, and believes that the MVP has a great leadership style despite being only 26 years old.
“His mentality, just a winner,” praised Williams. “He just has the mindset of, ‘I’m going to get it done.’ I think it was worn out for the rest of the team.
“You can always see it, he doesn’t make any excuses. I think it’s flowing into the team.”
The cores of Williams, Holmglen and SGA are expected to keep lightning at or near the top of the NBA over the next few seasons, and they are enjoying their development together as players.
“I think that’s where he grew as a leader,” Williams continued. “I’m not saying he wasn’t before in his career, but it’s really good that he led us that way just for our team.
In the series, the Thunder is a massive favorite, boasting -700 odds to win the series compared to the Pacers’ +500 odds.
It gives them the sixth-best odds of all time to win the final. It is linked to the 2004 Los Angeles Lakers.
However, despite having the -700 odds, the Lakers lost that series in four games to the Detroit Pistons.
Unlike the Lakers of the past, the Thunder does not appear to have any major ego or conflicting personality, and apparently bought the defensive mindset brought to the “team-first” style that Alex Caruso brought to by Presti, a longtime apprentice of San Antonio’s Greg Popovich.
SGA has a long way to go before comparing it to Shaq and Kobe, but his 2024-25 season was better than any of the 2003-04 campaigns.