Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of Toronto, Ontario made National Basketball Association history on Sunday by becoming the first Canadian to ever be named NBA Finals MVP. In the process, Gilgeous-Alexander won the award named after NBA legend Bill Russell.
Gilgeous-Alexander also was one of two Canadians to win the NBA Finals with the Thunder. He was joined by small forward Luguentz Dort of Montreal, Quebec. In a NBA finals that went the distance, the Thunder defeated the Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers four games to three including game seven in Oklahoma City on Sunday night by a score of 103-91.
In the seven game series, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 30.6 points per game, 5.6 assists per game, 4.6 rebounds per game, 1.9 steals per game, and 1.6 blocks per game. He also had a field goal percentage of .443, free throw percentage of .914, and three point percentage of .242.
Gilgeous-Alexander also became the fourth player in NBA history to lead the NBA in scoring, be named NBA MVP and NBA Finals MVP in the same season. Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls accomplished the feat four times (1991, 1992, 1996 and 1998). Meanwhile, the other two were Lew Alcindor of the Milwaukee Bucks in 1971 and Shaquille O’Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000. Gilgeous-Alexander also won the Magic Johnson Trophy for Western Conference Finals MVP.
