One of the best players in the NBA right now who doesn’t get a ton of publicity is the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
He’s gone from a rising star to one of the game’s most explosive and prolific scorers in recent years, and at just 24, he could still have room for improvement.
In fact, he set an NBA record by becoming the youngest guard to average at least 30 points per game while shooting at least 50 percent from the field this season, breaking Michael Jordan’s previous record.
Truly historically efficient volume scoring from SGA this year 🤯 https://t.co/uaJ8tc7MX8 pic.twitter.com/oLQ9b1tk32
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) April 12, 2023
Gilgeous-Alexander put up 31.4 points per game and made 51.0 percent of his field goal attempts while contributing 5.5 assists per game.
He almost single-handedly carried a Thunder team expected by most to be terrible to a 40-42 record, earning them a spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Although Gilgeous-Alexander is 6-foot-6 and weighs just 180 pounds, he has become a free-throw magnet who attempted 10.9 foul shots per game this season and shot an outstanding 90.5 percent from the charity stripe, making perhaps the most impressive. aspect of his game.
By comparison, none of his teammates averaged even four free throw attempts a contest this season.
Moving forward, Oklahoma City might not win the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes if they lose to the Pelicans on Friday, but it should have the services of Chet Holmgren, who missed his entire rookie campaign with a foot injury, next year.
Additionally, it will have a large number of first-round draft picks in the coming years to build a winner around Gilgeous-Alexander.
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Kevin Durant comments on Oklahoma City’s young players
