Re-grading the OKC Thunder Paul George trade – one season later

The new prince of OKC – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander:

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is already defying perceived expectations pushing his ceiling far earlier than anticipated. The combination of his ability on the court, his quality of character, chill demeanor, icy competitive nature, and mental prowess have been on display through 63 games.

Will he ever ascend to a top-five talent such as his predecessors Durant, Westbrook, and Harden? In fairness, (and with no offense) not likely, but never say never. However, he does look like a young talent capable of reaching a top 15 or top 10 status.  More importantly, he’s a young CP3 doppelganger and the perfect cornerstone to construct a team in a small market around.

The fact he offers an extra four inches of height over his mentor coupled with a wingspan of almost 7′ and a standing reach of 8’8″ is the logistics. Witnessing his change of pace, ability to make the most difficult look simple are what has mesmerized the fan base.

Many overlook the compromises he made this season. With Paul the primary ball handler and the clutch time lineup also featuring Dennis Schroder it was SGA who had to adapt the most. Learning to play more off the ball and be productive offensively was no small feat.

Doing that while also registering massive leaps in his production highlights precisely why Presti insisted on his inclusion for George.

His personality is infectious whether it’s joking with Paul off the court or his calm veteran like demeanor on it. In contrast to Westbrook (and don’t get me wrong – my love for the Brodie and 110 percent effort will NEVER diminish) is in stark contrast to the former Prince of OKC.

SGA is the silent killer who never lets you see him sweating or coming in for the kill. While Westbrook cleared the path like a ramming bull delivering jaw-dropping dunks Shai glides past his opponents as if he’s on an ice rink but is the only one wearing skates.

Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 7/6/2020.

While adapting to playing the shooting guard and having the ball less in his hands his growth is palpable. As per the above basketball-reference stats chart, he’s almost doubled his scoring (+8.5) and trips to the line (+3.3). Despite having the ball less as a playmaker he’s maintained his assists and steals and other than the perimeter his scoring efficiency with more shot attempts.

While we may look at players like fellow Canadian, Luguentz Dort and opine — if he ever gets an average perimeter shot  — watch out. With Gilgeous-Alexander it’s not ‘if’ but rather, ‘when’.

Case in point, through the first 40 games he shot 34.3 percent on 3.6 attempts through the last 23 games he improved to 36.7 percent on 3.4 attempts. And, in the last 10 games where the OKC Thunder tied the Lakers for the best win percentage (8-2), he was shooting 38.2 percent on 3.4 attempts.

AND — guess what he worked on during the hiatus?

He leads the Thunder in scoring, is second to Steven Adams in rebounding, and third in assists behind Paul and Schroder.

Want more?

Erik Horne of The Athletic pointed out Danilo Gallinari and Trae Young share the best individual on/off court differential in offensive rating. When they sit their teams score 15.5 fewer points per 100 possessions. And, as we noted in the article — take a look at Horne’s chart which shows Chris Paul in fourth (14.7) and Gilgeous-Alexander in seventh (11.1). The only team with more than one player in the top 10.

Then consider the opposing players on this list ahead of SGA — in addition to Young, the others not on the Thunder are Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Spencer Dinwiddie.

Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 7/6/2020.

More from Thunder News

• Stealing one player from every Southwest Division team for the OKC Thunder
• Should the OKC Thunder chase after a disgruntled hometown hero?
• 3 OKC Thunder players who can step up in Aleksej Pokusevski’s absence
• Aleksej Pokusevski sidelined approximately 6 weeks with ankle injury
• Damian Lillard does not fit with the OKC Thunder

With the exception of Dinwiddie, each of these players are their team’s primary offensive threat. And, even his numbers are skewed given the injury absences of Kyrie Irving and Caris LeVert for large segments this season.

Take a gander at the “generational’ talents Shai is on this board with and note that he takes the fewest field goal attempts of the group. When we extrapolate to his potential moving forward it’s hard not to giddy based on how he’s affecting his team on both sides of the court.

The vastly underrated ‘throw in’ Danilo Gallinari:

As for Gallinari, I equate his addition similarly to how many undersold Danny Green as a ‘throw in’ to the Raptors in the Leonard trade. In Gallo’s case his ability to stretch the court coupled with his ability to offer ‘extras’ across the board hasn’t been credited enough.

Most believe he’ll be gone at season end whether directly via free agency or in a sign and trade. Then again, everyone expected him to be traded at the deadline.

Let’s just say, I wouldn’t consider that is a cemented fact particularly when you listen to how he’s spoken about the Thunder, Chris Paul, and his love for this team.

For more on Gallo, check our recent article on the underrated big man.

And with that – let’s get to the matter at hand and consider the re-grade for the Paul George trade.