After beating the New York Knicks 117-107, extending their historic winning streak to 14 straight, Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made his All-Star Game pitch for Jalen Williams. While leading their team atop the Western Conference for most of the season, Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams guided the Thunder to 14 straight. After the win, Shai pitched why Jalen was named to his first All-Star Game.

After Gilgeous-Alexander took a few seconds to consider his options, Williams encouraged him “to take his time” before discussing how important Williams has been for the Thunder's impressive 2024-25 campaign.

“Jalen is a very efficient, versatile basketball player on both ends of the floor,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We are the number one seed in the West by a good margin of games. Without Jalen, we would not be this good of a basketball team. And basically, Jalen is pretty good. Really, really good. It's nothing more than that.”

Even in the event of a snub, Gilgeous-Alexander says Williams is an All-Star, whether it's official or not. Then, he doubled down on the remark, labeling him an All-Star who will be in San Francisco, the home of NBA's 2025 All-Star Weekend.

“He is an All-Star whether he makes it or not,” Gilgeous-Alexander added. “Nah, he will make it. He's really, really good at basketball. He'll be there at San Fran.”

Williams scored 20 points and had five assists, four rebounds, two steals, and one block in the Thunder's win over the Knicks. His stat line reflects the consistent production we've seen from Williams in 2024-25. He's averaging 20.9 points on 48.1% shooting, 5.8 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 1.8 steals this season.

Jalen Williams' MVP pitch for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

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Before Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made his Jalen Williams All-Star pitch, Williams made his MVP pitch for last year's runner-up. When it came to Williams making his Gilgeous-Alexander MVP case, he kept it simple for everyone: watch him.

After finishing second for MVP in 2023-24, Gilgeous-Alexander is again a candidate for the illustrious honor. However, SGA is the apparent choice for Williams this season, per The Oklahoman's Joel Lorenzi.

“Watch the games. It’s pretty obvious. I don’t know how he didn’t get it last year. So, I don’t know what to tell you. I’m there every day. I see it every day. I’m in the game. Just watch the game. Trust your eyes. Watch the s***. That’s a bad man.”

Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams, and the Thunder will host the champion Celtics at the Paycom Center on Sunday.