NBA MVP Power Rankings: Joel Embiid drops, a new No. 1 emerges
By Jaren Boslow
4. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Last week's rank: 4
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the OKC Thunder built on the winning streak they established over the new year and convincingly beat the top-seeded Boston Celtics, which is why he will land the four spot in this week's ranking.
The December Western Conference Player of The Month award was recently handed out, and Shai was the recipient of that award. After averaging 32 points and three steals, Shai was the runaway pick for the Player of the Month award. Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic was the only other player in the hunt.
Shai led the Thunder to an astounding 10-3 record in December, which would lead all teams in the West for the month. Since Shai's heroics in December, the Thunder now find themselves in a hole after they started 1-2 in January.
Beating the Celtics was a great start to the new year, but they have seemed to meet a wall in the recent week. Despite the two-game losing streak, Shai has dominated and kept the Thunder competitive. He has scored a combined 69 points in the last two games and has scored 30 plus points in eight of his last nine appearances.
The Thunder will have a tough road schedule ahead of them as they play seven of their next nine games on the road. Shai will need to keep the Thunder afloat if he expects to rise in the coming weeks.