Those who follow basketball or the NBA carefully are probably aware of how talented Shai Gilgeous-Alexander truly is. Especially over the last few seasons, SGA has become a franchise player for the Oklahoma City Thunder. The franchise was known to have one of the best teams in the game, considering how much talent they possessed on the roster. But since 2019, it’s been SGA’s house.
Following Russell Westbrook’s departure, OKC was briefly led by Chris Paul with Shai lurking right behind him. The Thunder were successful during that run, as Paul helped them get to the playoffs with ease. Even though they were defeated by the Houston Rockets who had Westbrook and James Harden at the time, OKC was extremely challenging to compete against. Paul would leave during free agency and join the Phoenix Suns.
This paved the way for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to take over. Right now, OKC is known as his team. Even though the Thunder haven’t made the playoffs since 2020, they are aware that SGA is a keeper. Last season alone, he averaged 31.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game shooting 51% from the field. He finished 4th in scoring averages and was ranked as the third-best guard in the NBA. He also ranked fifth in MVP voting.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has the fifth-highest scoring average in the 2023 FIBA World Cup tournament
Currently, the 2023 FIBA World Cup is what’s being followed by basketball fans far and wide. So far, USA and Serbia have made strong cases to win the gold medal this year. However, Canada also had an incredibly successful run over the last week. Backed by a powerful squad including Dillon Brooks and Kelly Olynyk, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wreaked havoc over the tournament.
He averaged 23.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game. SGA also shot 54.3% from the field, almost 30% from deep, and 87.3% from the free throw line. In addition to this, Shai also recorded 1.9 steals per game as well. Against Spain in the second round, he scored 30 points to lead the Canadians to the quarterfinals. Canada faced Luka Doncic’s Slovenia and SGA finished with a 31-point victory for the country.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is statistically the best player in the world at the moment
(Via @hoopshype ) pic.twitter.com/tZM39TC1La
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 6, 2023
However, while they battled against Serbia in the semifinals, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did not have much of a showing. Serbia handed over a gruesome defeat to the Canadians who will now play for third place. Shai finished the tournament with the fifth-highest scoring average overall. They will face the loser of the game between Germany and USA.