Why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Dismisses Rival Talk, Looks Forward to Playing Legends

Over the course of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s rise to the top, he has been in so many different conversations regarding tiers and caliber. He ascended from a fun young player, to an All-Star, to an All-NBA guy, and finally, an MVP. He has been compared to so many players at all the different milestones throughout his career, and now, there’s not much room left for comparison — he’s arguably the best player in the world.

For Gilgeous-Alexander, he has never been one to make a big deal out of rivalries. Whether it’s an individual matchup or a highly contested team matchup, he’s one of the best about downplaying everything and simply treating it like another day at the office. There’s nothing anyone can say to throw SGA off his game — he’s extremely mild-mannered and never gets flustered. He looks like the same guy every night. Because of that, he’s never had much interest in rivalries — for himself, and for the Thunder.

That doesn’t mean he doesn’t look forward to certain games or matchups, though. As a student of the game and someone that simply loves basketball, Gilgeous-Alexander looks forward to playing the legends, the future Hall of Famers. And that makes sense, because that’s how he wants to be regarded as one day too. Obviously he still rises to the occasion against any star, including ones his own age, but who wouldn’t be excited to square off against the best basketball players of all time?

“Nothing against the guys my age, but the guys I can’t wait to match up against are the LeBron's, the Steph Curry's, the KD's, the James Harden’s,” Gilgeous-Alexander said in his latest GQ interview. “The guys I grew up watching, that have completely stamped themselves on basketball forever, that have accomplished the things I want from the game. There’s no better test to see if I’m capable of accomplishing those things than going against those guys.”

There are a few players that come to mind who could earn the rivalry badge against Gilgeous-Alexander moving forward. Not because of distaste or drama, but because of team status and big games on the horizon in the playoffs. Tyrese Haliburton had some good back and forth moments, and Anthony Edwards feels like he’s on the cusp of turning into an MVP candidate. Ja Morant is another guard who has battled the Thunder and had a few things to say in the playoffs a season ago. Luka Doncic is someone who always seems to be in SGA debates, too.

The obvious one is Nikola Jokic, but it’s hard to make a fuss about a potential rivalry when they don’t play anywhere close to the same position. The two are rarely guarding eachother over the course of the game, and Gilgeous-Alexander knows that. Even though the Denver-OKC rivalry could certainly be a budding one, the individual matchup doesn’t make much sense.

“He’s a center and I’m a point guard, so it’s hard to match up,” he said. “Like back in the day, when Chris Paul and Dwight Howard were in their prime—they can compete, but they can’t match up, so it’s hard to tell [who’s better], right?”

Regardless of rivalries, though, Gilgeous-Alexander just wants to be the greatest of his era. He wants to be the most dominant player during his prime.

And that’s probably why he looks forward to playing the legends so much — like LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, and James Harden. They were the best players of their era, the ones who dominated most categories. Now, Gilgeous-Alexander wants to do the same, and dominate the next era after the legends move on.

“That’s what it’s all about: In your era, how dominant can you be?” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “And winning multiple in a row speaks to that dominance, for sure. We definitely have the talent, the personnel, the chemistry, the experience to repeat. But so many things have to go right from now to the end of June 2026.”