It’s early in the 2025-26 NBA season, but the MVP race has been tight. Many believe that it’s a battle between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic. Both superstars started their season hot, leading their respective teams to competitive records. Gilgeous-Alexander has taken the Oklahoma City Thunder to the top of the Western Conference with a 12-1 record, while Jokic’s Denver Nuggets are second with a 9-2 record.
SGA is averaging 32.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 6.6 assists. By the looks of it, he could be having another MVP season. His numbers look identical to what he posted last season, when he earned the valuable award for the first time. The Canadian star has also consistently scored over 20 points this year.
On Friday, former NBA player Kendrick Perkins named SGA as his early-season pick to win the MVP. According to Perk, the three-time All-Star has led the Thunder well even without his co-star, Jalen Williams. Additionally, the current ESPN analyst acknowledged that Gilgeous-Alexander has been available for all of OKC’s games thus far.
On Friday’s episode of ESPN’s “NBA Today,” Perkins talked about how Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is his early pick over MVP over Jokic.
“This guy right now is averaging 32 points and he hasn’t missed a single game,” Perkins said.
.@KendrickPerkins shares his list of top MVP candidates right now 🤩 pic.twitter.com/gSSSYop4l0
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) November 14, 2025
Perkins also named other stars who have a case to win the MVP. The former player named Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers, who’s averaging 34.9 points, 9.1 rebounds and 8.9 assists. Doncic led the Lakers to an 8-4 record without LeBron James.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was also mentioned by Perk. As the lone star in Milwaukee, the Greek Freak has started to take over. He also considered Cade Cunningham as an MVP candidate for leading the Detroit Pistons to a 10-2 record, the best in the East.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gets praised by JJ Redick
On Wednesday, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder to a 121-92 win over the Lakers. The 6-foot-6 guard took control of the game with his 30 points, five rebounds and nine assists on 55.6% shooting. Following the contest, LA’s head coach, JJ Redick, had high praise for the 2025 Finals MVP.
“Yeah, I mean he’s a killer. Just like a lot of the best players in the world are. He’s the MVP for a reason. I think he gets the warranted amount of attention and scheming from opposing defenses like we did. And he still is going to figure out a way to get 30. He’s just a really, really good basketball player,” Redick said.
JJ: "They gave us the advantage a lot and we didn't take advantage of it." pic.twitter.com/SbZKDJeqek
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) November 13, 2025
The next time the two teams meet will be on Feb. 9 at Crypto.com Arena.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
