OKC Thunder: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander joins clutch time leader board

The OKC Thunder are past the quarter season mark having played 22 games and hover around .500 with a 10-12 record. One of the most intriguing aspects of this season that seems to have carried over from the 2019-20 campaign is their clutch time prowess.

Last season, OKC feasted on clubs if they reached the final five minutes within five points leading to Intentions dubbing them the Clutch Time Killers. Chris Paul in particular was deadly during this stage of games.

The Point God is carrying on that tradition in Phoenix but the players he mentored in OKC are proving they are good students as they continue on the clutch time tradition. Of their 22 games, half (or 11) qualified as clutch games. That means the teams are within five points entering the final five minutes of games. The Thunder have won seven of those matches.

The trio of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luguentz Dort, and Darius Bazley find themselves in the mix for most clutch wins having tallied seven wins. Of note, while NBA stats lists the Thunder as participating in 11 clutch games their individual player stats page only lists 10 games so perhaps they haven’t updated the individual stat page.

A trio of Kings (Harrison Barnes, Richaun Holmes, and rookie Tyrese Haliburton) top the leaderboard with 11 wins in 15 clutch time games. Two players have 10 wins, seven have nine wins and five have eight.

The OKC Thunder are in the seven wins group with another 15 players including Chris Paul.

OKC Thunder cornerstone Shai Gilgeous-Alexander clutch time DNA

Gilgeous-Alexander lands in several key clutch time categories:

• Tied for 13th with Joel Embiid for average points scored in clutch time with 4.1 points.
• Ranks 18th, tied with Embiid, Jerami Grant, and Chris Paul for field goals made (1.1)
• Third for free throws made (1.9)
• Second for free throw attempts (2.5)
• Tied with Malcolm Brogdon, Damian Lillard, LeBron James, Marcus Smart, Markelle Fultz, Caris Levert, John Wall, and Kendrick Nunn in 13th for assists (0.8).
• Tied with 31 other players in 33rd for steals (0.2) *of note Kenrich Wiliams joins a group ranked ahead in 17th with 0.3 steals.

As a team, the Thunder ranks seventh in clutch wins percentage behind the 76ers, Lakers, Kings, Blazers, Cavaliers, and Jazz. During the clutch segment, the team ranks fourth in clutch defensive rating behind the Hornets, 76ers, and Grizzlies.

It’s clear Gilgeous-Alexander specifically learned a lot last season from being in so many close games. His leadership during this phase of games is obvious. A perfect example was the win Saturday versus the Wolves.

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Although the Thunder coughed up a huge lead that’s been happening to all teams far more frequently this season.

The fact, OKC was able to hang on for the win and that Gilgeous-Alexander not only embraces the role of leading during this time frame but is successful at doing so bodes very well for the future of the Thunder.

That’s not something to be overlooked. As an example, look at the Dallas Mavericks whose biggest issue last season was coughing up leads late in games and have struggled again this season (4-6).

As the Thunder looks toward the future success and rebuilding the team into a championship contender it’s good to know the core players who Sam Presti is building around already possess the ability to win in the most stressful moments.