{"id":275838,"date":"2025-05-08T05:19:57","date_gmt":"2025-05-08T05:19:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/08\/charley-barkley-announces-his-nba-mvp-amid-nikola-jokic-vs-shai-gilgeous-alexander-showdown\/"},"modified":"2025-06-25T17:08:35","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T17:08:35","slug":"charley-barkley-announces-his-nba-mvp-amid-nikola-jokic-vs-shai-gilgeous-alexander-showdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/08\/charley-barkley-announces-his-nba-mvp-amid-nikola-jokic-vs-shai-gilgeous-alexander-showdown\/","title":{"rendered":"Charley Barkley announces his NBA MVP amid Nikola Jokic vs Shai Gilgeous-Alexander showdown"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> [ad_1]<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-content\" data-postid=\"4908546\" data-slug-id=\"2509128\">\n<div class=\"vidazoo-player-container\">\n<span class=\"vidazoo-close-btn  hidden \"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/cmc-predictor\/v2\/cross-icon.png?w=40\" width=\"20\" height=\"20\" alt=\"close\"\/><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/basketball\/charles-barkley\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Charles Barkley<\/a> isn\u2019t exactly famous for getting his predictions right, but on Wednesday, as the OKC Thunder obliterated the Denver Nuggets in Game 2 of their Western Conference semifinal matchup, he made his call, picking Shai Gilgeous-Alexander over Nikola Jokic.<\/p>\n<p>With SGA leading the charge, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/basketball\/oklahoma-city-thunder\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Thunder<\/a> raced to an 87-56 halftime lead \u2014 the most points ever scored in a half in NBA playoff history \u2014 behind his 18 points and seven assists through the first 24 minutes.<\/p>\n<p>During the \u201cInside the NBA\u201d halftime show, Barkley declared Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as his MVP.<\/p>\n<p><template id=\"bets-today-poll\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"preview-card-holder bets-today-poll\">\n<p><span class=\"date\"\/> \u2022 <span class=\"time\"\/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"march-madness-logo\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/skm\/assets\/march-madness-logo.png\" height=\"42\" width=\"99\" alt=\"march madness logo\"\/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;This guy right here is the MVP,\u201d he said. \u201cWe can already send it to him. We&#8217;re gonna see him in the WCF when he get his MVP trophy. I think that team gonna win the championship.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><template id=\"also-read-articles-template\"><\/p>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<p>In ESPN\u2019s MVP straw poll, which replicates the actual voting process, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander emerged as the top choice in the final iteration, earning 77 first-place votes and 23 second-place votes for 931 points. Jokic collected all the remaining top and second-place nods, coming in second with 769 points.<\/p>\n<p>The two are now clashing head-to-head in this playoff series.<\/p>\n<p>Jokic exploded in Game 1 with a jaw-dropping 42 points and 22 rebounds, lifting Denver to a 121-119 win capped by an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/basketball\/aaron-gordon\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">Aaron Gordon<\/a> game-winning triple.<\/p>\n<p>But in Game 2, it was SGA\u2019s turn, dropping 34 points and eight assists, and recording a historic plus-51 rating \u2014 the highest ever in a playoff game \u2014 in just three quarters as OKC cruised to a 149-106 blowout.<\/p>\n<h2>Players pulling for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to win MVP, says James Harden<\/h2>\n<p>In April, NBA insider Rachel Nichols said she spoke with James Harden, who revealed that while players recognize Nikola Jokic as the best player, they\u2019re rallying behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for MVP.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking on the \u201cOpen Floor\u201d podcast, Nichols said:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cI talked to James Harden for a little bit this morning before the Clippers left for Denver, and I said, who&#8217;s the best player? And he said, \u2018Well, no question, Jokic is the best player.\u2019 But even he said, \u2018All the players, we want to see Shai win MVP because of the season he had and the winning.\u2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cAnd I think that really factors in for them more than maybe some people on the outside are just looking at stats, stats, stats, stats, stats, see it, but he goes, but of course, Jokic is the best player.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>There\u2019s still no word on when the MVP will be revealed, but it\u2019s possible the announcement could come during this high-stakes showdown between Jokic\u2019s Nuggets and SGA\u2019s Thunder.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-post-rating-widget\">\n<p><template id=\"post-rating-feedback-modal-template\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-feedback-box\">\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-content\">\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-data\">\n<p>Why did you not like this content?<\/p>\n<p><textarea id=\"dislike-feedback-text\" rows=\"4\" placeholder=\"Please type your feedback...\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n<button class=\"close\">Cancel<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"submit\">Submit<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-widget-parent hidden\">\n<div class=\"rating-parent-container\">\n<div class=\"rating-content-holder\">\n<p>Was this article helpful?<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-action-container\">\n<div class=\"like-container\">\n<button class=\"post-rating-like-button post-rating-button\" data-action=\"like\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"post-like-image post-rating-image\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/like-articles\/upvote-icon-grey.svg\" height=\"20\" width=\"20\" alt=\"like selected\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dislike-container\">\n<button class=\"post-rating-dislike-button post-rating-button\" data-action=\"dislike\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"post-dis-like-image post-rating-image\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/like-articles\/upvote-icon-grey.svg\" height=\"20\" width=\"20\" alt=\"avatar selected\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\nThank You for feedback\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"post-author-info-parent\">\n<span class=\"about-the-author\">About the author<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"author-info-holder\">\n<div class=\"author-pic-holder\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"author-pic\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,&lt;svg width=\" height=\"100\"\/><rect width=\"100\" height=\"100\" style=\"fill:rgb(128, 128, 128);\"\/>&#8221; data-lazy=&#8221;https:\/\/keedag.sportskeeda.com\/user-pic\/1253811-1730125987-200.jpg?w=200&#8243;<br \/>\nalt=&#8221;John Ezekiel Hirro&#8221; height=&#8221;72&#8243; width=&#8221;72&#8243;&gt;\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"author-bio-detail-holder\">\n<div class=\"author-bio\">\n<p class=\"author-bio\" id=\"author-bio-text\">\nJohn Ezekiel Hirro is an experienced NBA and WNBA journalist at Sportskeeda, with over five years in the field as a news correspondent, sports writer, and Editor-in-Chief. His sports writing career began in high school, where he garnered numerous accolades, including being named the national sports writing champion in 2016.<\/p>\n<p>He earned his journalism degree from the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines in 2024 and served as the Editor-in-Chief of The Varsitarian, the university&#8217;s official student publication, for four years\u2014the longest in history.<\/p>\n<p>A passionate basketball enthusiast, he became a fan of the OKC Thunder during the Russ-KD-Harden era. Russell Westbrook, his all-time favorite athlete, impressed him by stepping up as MVP after Kevin Durant&#8217;s departure. His current favorite players include Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, who he believes are the future of the OKC franchise.<\/p>\n<p>He excels in game analysis and rapid news story turnaround, drawing inspiration from the journalistic styles of Woj and Shams. He emphasizes thorough research to ensure accuracy in his articles. One of his most memorable moments is Russell Westbrook breaking Oscar Robertson&#8217;s record with his 42nd triple-double and securing a 106-105 victory over the Denver Nuggets with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. Outside of writing, he enjoys listening to music and creating Spotify playlists.\n<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"author-know-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/author\/hirrojohnezekiel-0b23b\" aria-label=\"Author know more\">Know More<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tag-cloud\">\n<div class=\"tags-text\">\n<div class=\"scrollable-content-holder  article-padding\">\n<p class=\"article-p  \">Quick Links<\/p>\n<p><button id=\"pnAdvancerLeft\" class=\"pn-Advancer pn-Advancer_Left \" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" style=\"background: none;\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/skm\/assets\/article\/article-scroll-left.svg\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button><\/p>\n<nav id=\"pnProductNav\" class=\"pn-ProductNav\">\n<\/nav>\n<p><button id=\"pnAdvancerRight\" class=\"pn-Advancer pn-Advancer_Right \" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" style=\"background: none;\" src=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/skm\/assets\/article\/article-scroll-right.svg\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<p>More from Sportskeeda<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n<span class=\"publisher-name\">Edited by John Ezekiel Hirro<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/basketball\/news-charley-barkley-announces-nba-mvp-amid-nikola-jokic-vs-shai-gilgeous-alexander-showdown\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Charles Barkley isn\u2019t exactly famous for getting his predictions right, but on Wednesday, as the OKC Thunder obliterated the Denver Nuggets in Game 2<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":275839,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[180],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275838"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=275838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275838\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/275839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=275838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=275838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=275838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}