While Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said it’s too soon for MVP talk, he took an opportunity to explain why Jalen Williams is an All-Star. Gilgeous-Alexander recently campaigned for Jalen Williams’ selection, campaigning for his teammate while pointing out the proof in Oklahoma City’s dominating 2024-25 campaign.

For Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder have not been as successful as they have been throughout the season without Williams’ consistent production, per Daily Thunder’s Brandon Rahbar.

“For our team to be as good as we’ve been, this far into the season, obviously coming up on the All-Star Game, I think it would only be right for him to be an All-Star,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “You don’t have this record because of one All-Star. You don’t have this record because of one good player. You have to have a team, a collective second All-Star — a very talented basketball player to help.

“A lot of times, I’m out of the game, and he’s carrying the load offensively,” Gilgeous-Alexander concluded.

Williams’ consistency factors into the Thunder leading the Western Conference.

“He averaged 20 on hyper-efficiency, and we are first in the West,” Gilgeous-Alexander added. “And I think because of that, his case should be sealed. But, hey, that’s just my opinion.”

Williams is averaging a career-best 20.6 points on 47.7% shooting, 5.7 rebounds, 5.2 assists, and 1.7 steals per game. In his third NBA season, it’s the strongest case he’s made for an All-Star nod. Williams is seventh among Western Conference frontcourt players in the NBA’s second fan return for All-Star voting, with roughly 328,329 votes.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s All-Star pitch for Jalen Williams

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Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s All-Star pitch for Jalen Williams wasn’t the first time he’s vouched for his teammates’ candidacy. Amid the Thunder’s 15-game win streak, Gilgeous-Alexander cited Williams’ efficient approach and their team’s dominance of the Western Conference standings as his most significant talking points.

For Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams’ All-Star selection is a no-brainer.

“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.

“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.”

The NBA All-Star Game starters will be announced on January 23. Then, the reserves will be named on January 30.