Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has bagged the NBA Most Valuable Player again and is widely viewed as the league’s top player, with only three-time MVP Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets making a strong case otherwise.
But the Oklahoma City Thunder star called the 2025-26 season a failure on Sunday, a day after the Thunder fell to the San Antonio Spurs in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals, ending their bid for back-to-back NBA titles. The Spurs advanced to face the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals, while Gilgeous-Alexander begins an offseason that arrived sooner than expected.
“I failed at my goal,” Gilgeous-Alexander said during his exit interview. “I didn’t achieve what I wanted to achieve. But I learn the most about myself and make the greatest improvements in my career when I fail and don’t get what I want. I look at this no different. I didn’t get where I wanted to go this season. There’s a reason for that. Now I have to look at that reason and try to make sure it never happens again.”
The Thunder had been considered strong favorites to reach the NBA Finals for much of the season.
Oklahoma City started 24-1 and also put together a late-season 19-1 run toward the end of its 64-18 campaign. The Thunder then won eight straight games to open the postseason before running into trouble against the Spurs.
Still, Oklahoma City held a 3-2 series lead before being routed 118-91 in San Antonio in Game 6. The Spurs also outplayed the host Thunder in Game 7, prevailing 111-103.
Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 25.9 points in the series, including three games of 30 or more, but shot just 40.9% from the field, well below his 55.3% mark in the regular season, when he averaged 31.1 points.
Gilgeous-Alexander shot less than 37% four times in a series in which Spurs star Victor Wembanyama was a constant obstacle.
“There’s a guy on their back line who is a little bit different,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of Wembanyama. “They funnel everything to him. It’s a really good defense. But it’s not impossible to score. I just think it’s very different.”
The Thunder were hurt by not having fellow star Jalen Williams for Game 7 because of a left hamstring injury. He played in just three games in the series and five in the postseason due to the injury.
Williams believes the series would have gone differently if he had been healthy.
“Obviously I think I could have made an impact,” Williams said. “I think we could have won if I played. We went to seven with them without me playing. I don’t think I make us worse. That’s really my answer to that. But it’s also hats off to them. What do you want them to do about me being hurt?”
Ajay Mitchell, who filled in well for Williams, missed the final four games after sustaining a right calf strain. His absence also hurt.
One player drawing scrutiny over the Oklahoma City collapse is big man Chet Holmgren, who was outplayed by the 7-foot-4 Wembanyama. He averaged just 10.7 points in the series and was virtually non-existent in Game 7, finishing with four points on 1-of-2 shooting and four rebounds in 33 minutes.
“I feel like part of it was being closed out heavy,” Holmgren said. “Then also just being a little bit out of rhythm sometimes. I feel like there were definitely opportunities to get more attempts up that I didn’t in the moment. That’s an area to improve.”
Wembanyama averaged 27.3 points, 10.9 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in the series for San Antonio.
