Pre 2024 Playoffs: Thunder & Shai's MVP Case

He's by far the best player on a team that won at least 50 games and has homecourt advantage in round 1 of the playoffs. Also, based on the production and eye test, SGA has proven to be one of the top performers this season. What makes his MVP case even stronger is that OKC entered this year as the 2nd youngest squad in the NBA. They also play only 1 big man significant minutes on a consistent basis: an extremely thin rookie (Chet) with 0 postseason experience who anchors the worst rebounding team in the western conference. The Thunder are too thin, small, and young for me to see them as a legit championship contender which is why I think they have a round 2 ceiling. Their premier "3 and D" player (Dort) is only 6'4 so how do they contain formidable frontcourt scorers when the lights are brightest? J-Dub is OKC's second best scorer but he has never played in the playoffs as well. Even for Shai, this'll be his first time playing with the pressure of being the #1 option in the postseason. But despite the Thunder's limitations, Shai's elite individual shot creation and frequent, as well as efficient, trips to the free throw line have been the main reasons why they're (record wise) one of the association's best teams.

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