Indiana Pacers Coach Gives Glowing Review of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

The Oklahoma City Thunder have made the NBA Finals and run up against the Indiana Pacers. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the League's MVP and earned played respect of Rick Carlisle before the series.

Mar 29, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) gestures after scoring against the Indiana Pacers during the second half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City is heading to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2012. They meet up with the Indiana Pacers as each franchise is seeking its first NBA Championship. One will walk away with the crown after this series, beginning on Thursday, June 5, inside the Paycom Center.

The Thunder are the heavy favorites to win the NBA Finals, in large part due to having a superstar in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Kentucky product won his first MVP award this season, leading the NBA in scoring and being one of the best players on the planet, as Gilgeous-Alexander should be seen as a top-three player in the association.

Gilgeous-Alexander can punish teams, playing at his own pace and tempo, getting to his spots at will and the ability to nail mid-range jumpers with defenders draped all over him.

On Tuesday, the Indiana Pacers held a practice session back home before jetting to Oklahoma City for NBA Finals Media Day which will begin Wednesday afternoon.

At practice, head coach Rick Carlisle fielded questions from the gathered media with the topic of conversation clearly getting around to the League's MVP, where the Pacers' bench boss gave the Thunder superstar high praise.

"This guy was born to be great. You can just tell. He has a demeanor and a coolness and an attitude. He's unflappable. He knows who he is and he has great belief in himself," Carlisle said of Gilgeous-Alexander. "From afar and I've been watching this guy, it's pretty breathtaking. Looks like the guy doesn't even break a sweat. It's really hard to fathom how difficult it is to score 30 points in one men's league game. Let alone doing it every game for two years in a row in the NBA."

This is a great summary of Gilgeous-Alexander's game, especially his ability to score at a high clip consistently. A refreshing summary from a successful head coach, after the last two series saw opposing head coaches attempting to get ahead of the curve on foul discourse rather than to actually shed light on basketball.

Gilgeous-Alexander is attempting to win his first NBA Championship and go for a clean sweep of MVP honors. Winning the League's MVP, the Western Conference Finals MVP and perhaps the NBA Finals MVP.