With the NBA regular season less than a week away, players and teams are starting to prepare themselves for the pursuit of the 2025-26 Larry O'Brien trophy.
For the Oklahoma City Thunder, a new pressure will be on their plate as the defending NBA champions. All eyes will be on the 2024-25 NBA MVP and NBA Finals MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Heading into this season, he was able to get a spotlight interview with GQ Magazine. One of the conversations that took place was about his future, specifically his outlook on eventually retiring from the game of basketball.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander plans to retire once his game declines
At 27 years old, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander achieved one of the most successful individual seasons in NBA history, winning the regular season scoring title, the season MVP, capturing the Thunder's first championship in franchise history, and culminating in the Finals MVP.
In an interview with GQ Magazine's Yang-Yi Goh, Gilgeous-Alexander was asked about retirement heading into the 2025-26 season.
Goh asked the Thunder star if playing into his 40s was something he was willing to do. Gilgeous-Alexander responded, saying, "I definitely think I can. I won't, though. A hundred percent."
"I won’t want to miss that much of my kid’s life, and there’s a certain point in your career where you reach your peak... But I just feel like I play this game, ultimately, to see what the best version of me can be. Once I figure that out and I start going down, then it’s like, Okay, well, what am I playing for now? As soon as that happens, I’ll be on the first ship out."
Gilgeous-Alexander still has a lot of basketball to play in his prime. Finding the amount of success he has at his age, there's no telling how long he'll be able to keep it up. However, the NBA MVP has made it known that his family is his biggest priority in life.
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