Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the reigning two-time MVP of the NBA, and the Oklahoma City Thunder opened their title defense Tuesday night with a 116-104 win over the San Antonio Spurs, the same team that eliminated them in last season’s Western Conference Finals. The result mattered less than what it represented: another data point in a development story that Thunder general manager Sam Presti has steered since Gilgeous-Alexander arrived in Oklahoma City. Presti’s patient, relationship-first approach to building around his star is central to understanding how a player once outside the top half of NBA scouts’ watch lists became the league’s best player.
A Fable That Explains The Philosophy
Presti once gave Gilgeous-Alexander a copy of “The Tortoise and the Hare,” using the children’s book to frame his leadership approach. “Slow and steady wins the race,” Gilgeous-Alexander said, recalling the message. He added that the fable fit his own story.
“My journey resonates a lot with that. It just kind of made sense,” he said.
The gesture was not incidental. It reflected how Presti has managed Gilgeous-Alexander’s career, prioritizing long-term development over shortcuts, and it gave the star a framework for his own patience during years when the Thunder were rebuilding rather than contending.
A Late Bloomer By His Own Account
Gilgeous-Alexander was not highly recruited in high school, and he said he was behind many of his peers as a ninth grader. “There were so many people, like so many people that were in ninth grade at that time that were better than me in basketball,” he said. A year later, he earned a starting spot on his varsity team and his AAU squad.
His first Division I scholarship offer came from Binghamton the following summer. By his senior year, he had turned that into offers from several high-major programs, ultimately choosing Kentucky, and he had joined Canada’s national team program. “I’ve just been able to outlast and keep getting better, and it’s allowed me to get here today,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.
Presti Saw Consistency Before The Numbers Did
Presti’s scouting history with Gilgeous-Alexander predates the Thunder’s acquisition of him. While evaluating a Kentucky team that eventually sent seven players to the NBA, Presti said Gilgeous-Alexander was not an obvious priority target. “There was a list of guys to go see, and he wasn’t in the top half of that list coming into the season. But it was funny because you go to see him so many times and he was always the most consistent player,” Presti said.
That consistency, more than flash, is what Presti tracked. He has been careful not to overstate his foresight about what followed. “No one could have anticipated what has transpired. So I don’t want to make it sound like we knew any of that,” Presti said, referring to the historically elite production that has turned the Thunder into perennial contenders.
The Numbers Behind Back-To-Back MVPs
Gilgeous-Alexander has collected more than 75% of first-place MVP votes over the last two seasons, according to the Chicago Tribune. His scoring average over that stretch is 32 points per game, the highest in the league. He opened this season with 32 points, five rebounds and four assists in the win over San Antonio, a line that matches his two-year scoring pace almost exactly, per Yahoo Sports.
He is now positioned to chase a rare third straight MVP, a club few players have ever entered, and he has said his priority stays elsewhere. “I feel like I’m a better basketball player, more versatile as a basketball player. In better shape too,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.
Trust Runs Both Directions
Gilgeous-Alexander has credited the relationship with Presti directly for his willingness to stay patient through the franchise’s rebuilding years. “I just believed wholeheartedly and had trust in just like the human being Sam was. In this business, that’s another thing that you just can’t control, who runs your organization.
I’ve been lucky to be placed with a guy like Sam. It’s been amazing,” he said.
Presti has returned that trust with public praise for Gilgeous-Alexander’s approach to his craft. “I have a lot of respect for him as a person. Obviously as a player, it’s one thing, but I really respect the way he goes about his craft.
When you see somebody that dedicated to the process itself, it makes you want to really advocate for them,” Presti said. A psychologist who has worked with Gilgeous-Alexander, cited by the Chicago Tribune, pointed to his emotional regulation as a difference-maker. “His emotional awareness and regulation is superior, in my opinion.
It’s extraordinary. His view is layered. He doesn’t live in a pass-fail world, and that’s part of what’s allowed him to come kind of from the back of the pack as a lightly recruited college player to this ascent,” the psychologist said.
The Counterpoint: Roster Decisions Were Not All His Call
The patient, trust-based dynamic between Presti and Gilgeous-Alexander has limits worth noting. Last offseason, the Thunder faced a reported $213 million luxury tax bill if they kept their full roster intact. Gilgeous-Alexander made clear he would not weigh in on how Presti handled that math.
“I will give zero input,” he said, declining to comment on personnel decisions after Oklahoma City’s Game 7 loss to the Spurs. The arrangement that has produced back-to-back MVPs also depends on Gilgeous-Alexander staying out of Presti’s roster-building decisions entirely, a boundary both men appear to respect even when it costs the team talent.
What To Watch This Season
Gilgeous-Alexander enters 2026-27 with a chance to join the small group of players who have won three consecutive MVP awards, and international players have now won the award eight straight times. He has downplayed the individual chase. “I’ve just got to be the best player I can be for this basketball team, win as many games as possible.
That kind of recipe for me in the past has kind of worked, and I’ve been fortunate to win two in a row. No different for me going into this season,” he said. Presti sees no ceiling yet.
“He’s still going. He’s got a lot more levels to go, and his mindset, I think, is the No. 1 thing that drives all that,” Presti said. The Thunder are considered co-favorites with the Spurs to win the championship this season, and Oklahoma City’s next test will come as the schedule unfolds through November, with Gilgeous-Alexander’s MVP case likely drawing continued attention alongside the team’s push for a title.
Oklahoma City also recently locked up guard Cason Wallace with a five-year extension, part of the roster building Presti has balanced around his star.
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