The Oklahoma City Thunder have opened the 2025-26 season in thrilling fashion with consecutive double overtime games, first against the Houston Rockets and then against the Indiana Pacers. The Thunder have been led by franchise player and MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is on the verge of surpassing Russell Westbrook’s franchise record after his offensive explosion against the Pacers.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dropped a career-high 55 points on the Pacers as the Thunder moved to 2-0 on the season, and with one more 50 point game he will surpass Russell Westbrook’s record for most 50 point games in franchise history, as per StatMuse. Both SGA and Westbrook have five 50 point games each for the Thunder.
Gilgeous-Alexander is coming off his first MVP award while leading the Thunder to their first ever championship in franchise history as they do not claim the Seattle Sonics history. The Thunder originally acquired SGA in a 2019 offseason trade with the LA Clippers that sent Paul George to the Clippers. While it wasn’t the case at the time, it’s now widely regarded that the Thunder won that trade.
Last season, Gilgeous-Alexander appeared in 76 games for the Thunder at a little over 34 minutes per game. He averaged 32.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.7 steals with splits of 51.9 percent shooting from the field, 37.5 percent shooting from the three-point line and 89.8 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
During the Thunder’s championship run, he averaged 29.9 points, 5.3 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 1.7 steals with splits of 46.2 percent shooting from the field, 28.3 percent shooting from the three-point line and 87.6 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
In the Thunder’s 125-124 season opening win in double overtime against the Rockets, SGA finished with 35 points, five rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocked shots in 47 minutes of play. He shot 12-of-26 from the field and 10-of-14 from the free-throw line, but shot only 1-of-9 from the three-point line
The Thunder remain an early favorite to repeat as NBA champions, and Gilgeous-Alexander has a good chance at winning another MVP award.
