Thunder Prospect Evaluation: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
At 6-foot-6, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the perfect NBA guard. He fits the positionless style of play the NBA is shifting towards and can do a little bit of everything.
A former lottery pick, Gilgeous-Alexander was the cornerstone piece of the Paul George trade just a few summers ago and has developed into a star ever since. He’s evolved into the face of the franchise and the piece the Oklahoma City Thunder will build around going forward.
As the Thunder continue their rebuild, Gilgeous-Alexander has the opportunity to significantly expedite that process and raise the ceiling of the team. With how much he’s grown as a player each season, it wouldn’t be shocking to see him get an NBA All-Star nod this year.
As each player in this series is evaluated, it’s important to consider the prospect they are now, but more importantly how they could look in five years when the Thunder are a competitive playoff team once again.
Last Season’s Numbers
In limited action last season, Gilgeous-Alexander was a star for the Thunder. He finished the season averaging 23.7 points, 5.9 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game. He only played in 35 games due to a foot injury that kept him out towards the end of the season.
At age 22, he was a top-25 scorer in the NBA and one of only four players who averaged more than 20 points per contest while shooting 80 percent from the line, 40 percent from three and 50 percent from the floor.
This put him in rare company, as Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Zach LaVine were the only other players to achieve this efficiency.
Gilgeous-Alexander also improved drastically as a 3-point shooter. In fact, less than 25 players in the NBA last season that played at least 20 minutes per game shot a better percentage from deep than him. In the modern NBA, being a solid shooter from three is almost always a necessity.
Being as efficient as Gilgeous-Alexander was on one of the worst teams in the league says a lot about just how good he was last season.
Fit On Current Roster
Gilgeous-Alexander will head into the 2021-22 season at age 23. He will be the unquestioned leader of the team both on and off the court. The rising star will likely lead the team in many statistical categories and be a key voice in the locker room for the young guys.
With his height and length, Gilgeous-Alexander can play a variety of positions. This will prove to be key this season as OKC looks to develop a ton of young players. His versatility will allow the team to play unique lineup combinations and maximize the minutes of their prospects.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s role will be very similar to what it was last season, as he will shoulder a heavy portion of the offensive load and be the main driver of winning games.
Long-Term Fit
In terms of the Thunder’s timeline towards contending again, it completely revolves around Gilgeous-Alexander at this point. While OKC will certainly acquire top-level talent over the next few seasons through the draft and via trade, he’s their top guy right now and for the future.
When the team is ready to contend once again, Gilgeous-Alexander will be part of the dynamic core Thunder GM Sam Presti puts together.
With Oklahoma City continuing to push positionless basketball, it doesn’t necessarily matter what Gilgeous-Alexander’s long-term position is. What’s more important is that he’ll have the ball in his hands a ton and will make great things happen.
In short, Gilgeous-Alexander is a great long-term fit in OKC because this is his team.
Prospect Grade
A+
There’s not many prospects in the entire NBA that are more attractive young players than Gilgeous-Alexander. At such a young age, he’s already proven he can be the top option on an NBA team.
After producing historically efficient numbers last season, the sky is the limit for the rising star. As the Thunder continue their rebuild, it will be around Gilgeous-Alexander.
With a rare combination of size and skill at the guard position, Gilgeous-Alexander truly has the potential to be a future Hall of Famer.
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