Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Cemented Himself as NBA’s Best Isolation Player

Oklahoma City's superstar scored many of his buckets unassisted en route to winning MVP.

Jun 22, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) dribbles the ball against Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) during the second half of game seven of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City’s superstar turned in one of the best season’s that we’ve ever seen from a guard in the NBA. Adding up the statistics, efficiency, and stats, it’s hard to find many seasons better than the one that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander just had.

When talking about the Thunder, many tried to discredit what Gilgeous-Alexander did because of his star-studded cast of teammates. The truth is, though, that Gilgeous-Alexander was the one that made Oklahoma City a super team. The Thunder’s roster was perfectly built, there’s no doubt about it. But SGA’s greatness is what allowed the Thunder to have one of the best seasons of all time.

There are plenty of stats to prove his greatness this season, but one seems to stand above the rest — and discredit the notion of a super team being the main reason for his success. Gilgeous-Alexander was the best isolation scorer in the league by a wide margin — he did most of his scoring on his own. And still, nobody could stop him.

76.2% of Gilgeous-Alexander’s buckets were unassisted — a shockingly high number. Of the top four in the category, he still had the most efficient way of scoring, too, at 56.9 eFG%. Many tried to stop Gilgeous-Alexander all season long, changing up defenses and throwing crazy looks at him whenever possible. Nobody could find a way, though.

4 players in '24-'25 scored 70%+ of their FGM on unassisted buckets...

- SGA: 76.2% unassisted FGM—56.9 eFG%
- James Harden: 73.8%—50.1 eFG%
- Trae Young: 71.0%—49.1 eFG%
- Jalen Brunson: 70.6%—55.1 eFG%

Creating almost everything for themselves... pic.twitter.com/Hy1IHE3mK5

— NBA University (@NBA_University) July 31, 2025

In the regular season, SGA averaged a career-high 32.7 points per game on 51.9% from the floor and 37.5% from 3-point range. He didn’t fall off one bit in the playoffs either, where he poured in 29.9 points a night, too. His creation skills improved and he created a lot of great looks for his teammates, and his isolation play never fell off.

Gilgeous-Alexander cemented himself as the NBA's best isolation scorer, and has a chance to be one of the best of all-time in that department.