Gilgeous-Alexander Notches Productive Performance in First All-Star Game

Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played in his first career NBA All-Star Game on Sunday night, coming out on top as Team Giannis took down Team LeBron 184-175. Gilgeous-Alexander finished the event with nine points, seven assists and two rebounds in just 10 minutes of action after being taken fifth out of the All-Star reserves, going 4-for-5 from the field and 1-of-1 from 3-point range.

Damian Lillard, Anthony Edwards, Jrue Holiday and Jaylen Brown were selected ahead of Gilgeous-Alexander in the All-Star Draft.

The fifth-year veteran played in two very brief, productive stretches at the 2023 All-Star Game, scoring five points and dishing out five assists in his first six minutes on the floor. Jayson Tatum, Gilgeous-Alexander's teammate on Sunday evening, went 22-of-31 from the field, tallying 10 triples en route to a new All-Star Game record 55 points in 35 minutes.

Donovan Mitchell, another one of Gilgeous-Alexander's teammates on Sunday, went 15-for-25 from the field for a total of 40 points. Only Mitchell and Kyrie Irving finished the contest with more assists than the Thunder star, both of whom played over 29 minutes.

Even the game's announcers mentioned Gilgeous-Alexander's impressively unselfish play style in the All-Star Game. The OKC star passed up multiple open looks at the rim to get his teammates Pascal Siakam and former Oklahoma City big man Domantas Sabonis open shots.

The 6-foot-6 ball-handler earned his first bucket of the night by knocking down a sidestep 3-pointer in the second quarter. SGA also finished two dunks, slicing through the defense to get to the rim with two hands both in the second and third quarters.

Gilgeous-Alexander didn't seem too worried about padding his stats over the weekend though, as the first-time all-star took in all the experiences of the jam-packed NBA All-Star Break. Hailing from Toronto, the Kentucky product became the fourth Canadian-born player to reach an NBA All-Star Game, joining the likes of Steve Nash, Jamaal Magloire and Andrew Wiggins.

"Making the NBA from Canada is one thing, and then being a really good player in the NBA and then making the All-Star Game is another," said Gilgeous-Alexander over the weekend. "To be with the group of guys that have (been All-Stars)... is an honor and a blessing, for sure."

With the all-star festivities coming to a close, Oklahoma City's three representatives in Salt Lake City will head back to OKC and prepare for the remainder of the season. The team currently sits in a postseason position, but will have to battle to maintain its spot.

Rookie wing Jalen Williams and Gilgeous-Alexander will now make cases for their end-of-season award hopes as the Thunder fight to make the Play-In Tournament.

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