The Future of the OKC Thunder, an in-depth analysis of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Armed with incredible size for his position (6’6 in shoes and 6’11 wingspan), Shai has all the tools to become an All-Defense caliber player in the future.

Shai’s 6’11 wingspan is longer than Terrance Fergusons‘ 6’9 wingspan and is on par with Andre Roberson‘s, giving him the chance in the future to successful guard small forwards as well if he bulks up (only 180 pounds).

Using his length, Gilgeous-Alexander managed to rank in the 91st percentile of guards in block percentage (1.0) and in the 79th percentile in steal percentage (1.9) per Cleaning the Glass. Per-36 minutes he averaged 2.1 steals per game to go along with one block.

Shai spent nearly 79 percent of his defensive possessions last season defending opposing guards, and nearly 19 percent defending opposing forwards, via Krishna Narsu’s data. I expect Shai to become a very capable defender while guarding opposing small forwards after he gains more weight. The benefits of your point guard being able to defend the1-3 effectively go without saying, especially during this era of basketball where defenses are constantly switching.

During those possessions, he ranked in the 42nd percentile defending the opposing pick and roll ball handler, 83rd percentile in defending spot-ups and in the 63rd percentile of defending in isolation, per Synergy Sports.

In addition to that, in the 793 possessions of Shai playing halfcourt man defense, he allowed a measly 0.89 points per possession and ranked in the 69th percentile among players in that department.

I know I’m beating a dead horse here, but once again Shai’s IQ and length help him tremendously on defense.

How SGA’s length plays a big part in his defensive potential:

Isolated against John Wall, gets the easy strip and steal

Intercepts the entry pass

Chases Jeremy Lamb around the screen and stays on his hip to use his long arms to block his shot

Another one against the Hornets where he gets slightly beat on the cut but the opposing player stood no chance to score against SGA’s long reach

While not the greatest shot by Lamb, Shai manages to recover nicely from the pump fake and gets another block on a jump shot

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Shai possesses all the physical tools and basketball IQ to become one of the best guard defenders in the NBA, and it’s up to him to add more weight to his frame in order to physically match up with some of the bigger guards in the league.

In Conclusion:

While Shai may never be the caliber of player as Russell Westbrook or Paul George, he gives the OKC Thunder a building block and potential franchise cornerstone in addition to the massive draft capital they have acquired in recent trades.

Gilgeous-Alexander was not perfect (looked a bit hesitant with his shot last season, in addition to other things), but Shai is the best young prospect the Thunder have had since James Harden in 2009.

It’s up to him and the coaches to help him become the best player he can be, hopefully leading the Thunder to multiple playoff appearances just like the All-Stars in OKC did before him.

The Future of the OKC Thunder, an in-depth analysis of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander