Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder has been having a career year. While the Thunder are in the midst of a rebuild, they have a couple of great young players. All of whom are led by the young star of the team, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. While SGA’s potential has never been questioned, few saw this type of production coming from the young shooting guard this season. Especially on a Oklahoma City squad that has aspirations for a high draft pick this coming summer. Just how good has SGA’s season been so far? He very well could be on pace to make his first All-Star appearance this year.
SGA’s Season So Far
SGA has not just been having an All-Star caliber campaign, he is also on pace for a historic year. As of right now, he is averaging 31.5 points per game on shooting splits of 53.9 percent, 37.8 percent, and 94.0 percent. The last player who finished with numbers this good was none other than Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors. Not to mention, Gilgeous-Alexander has been on a tear lately.
In his most recent outing, SGA finished with 42 points and even hit yet another winning shot to give the Thunder the victory over the Washington Wizards. As for his last seven games, he has only had two games where he has finished with less than 30 points. On top of all of this, SGA is also averaging a career-best offensive rating of 122 to couple with a box plus/minus of +8.2.
“He been doing it all year, it’s not just us. I mean he’s been kicking everybody’s ass.”
Bradley Beal on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
The Canadian shooting guard is also tallying career-bests in true shooting percentage, steal percentage, and defensive box plus/minus. The scariest thing about all of this is that SGA is still young and just coming into his prime. Remember, he is only in his fifth NBA season and is just 24 years old. Many knew Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was bound to hit his stride at one point, but not many expected this type of explosion.
The Career of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
It is often forgotten that SGA started his career with the Los Angeles Clippers. After a rather impressive rookie campaign where he played all 82 games, he was included in the trade for Paul George. However, this may have been the best thing to have happened to Gilgeous-Alexander. Oklahoma City has provided him an environment where he can truly flourish and not be in the shadow of another NBA star.
As a result, he has became his own star. He has averaged 18.9 points, 4.4 assists, and 4.5 total rebounds per game. He has also shot 47.8 percent from the field for his career to go along with a three-point shooting percentage of 34.9 percent, a number that is likely to increase as he gets better with his all-around game. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may not be a household name as of yet. However, with the way he has played, he is well on his way to becoming an NBA All-Star.
