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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | Exit Interview

Thunder In Review: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Emphatic Return

Following the NBA All-Star break, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played like one of the top guards in the league.
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It was a tale of two seasons for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

During the first part of the season, he struggled across the board relative to his 2020-21 numbers. To make things worse, he suffered a significant ankle injury roughly halfway through the season.

For an entire month leading up to the All-Star break, Gilgeous-Alexander was sidelined as his ankle recovered. From there, he came back looking like a completely different player.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Thunder fans were excited for his return to action and how he fit alongside the rest of the guard rotation that had stepped up and improved in his absence. Most notably, the fit next to rookie guard Josh Giddey was top of mind, as the Australian had started to emerge as one of the top players in his class.

Unfortunately, SGA and Giddey only played in one game together following the break. After that first contest back, Giddey missed the remainder of the 2021-22 campaign with a hip injury. Just 11 games after the sole appearance in which they shared a backcourt, Gilgeous-Alexander’s season also came to an end as his ankle soreness lingered following the previous injury.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey

Over the 12 games in which SGA played following the ankle injury, Oklahoma City went 2-10. However, he showed just how special he is as the face of the franchise.

In these 12 games, he produced 30.3 points, 7.2 assists and 6.2 rebounds. His efficiency was much better than it was earlier in the season, as he started to perform like the superstar the front office knows he can be.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

While this timeframe was the turning point of the season and not many games were won, it was perhaps the best individual stretch of any Thunder player all season.

By the time the middle of March came around, both Gilgeous-Alexander and Giddey were no longer on the floor and wouldn't return. This is where Oklahoma City’s roster really started to take a turn.

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