Since coming to the OKC Thunder two offseasons ago, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has managed to develop into one of the most promising young prospects in the entire league.
In season one with the franchise, the guard saw himself leading the postseason bound Thunder in points (19 per game) at just 21-years-old while serving as second-fiddle to point god Chris Paul.
Now, in year two — year three of his career –, the 22-year-old finds himself serving as the team’s number one option and, in turn, is producing as a potential first-time All-Star. Despite being in the early stages of a rebuild, Oklahoma City has managed to find themselves competing every night, no matter if it’s against the lowly Chicago Bulls or the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers.
SGA has easily been the main reason why they’ve been such an impressive squad.
OKC Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is posting impressive averages
Through 21 games played, OKC’s young stud is boasting stellar averages of 22.6 points, 6.5 assists, and 5.5 rebounds on 51 percent shooting from the floor and 38 percent shooting from deep.
On the surface alone, these numbers are quite impressive. However, if one delves a bit deeper, you’d find that this type of production, assuming he keeps it up for the remainder of 2020-21, is not something that happens very often.
Throughout the years, there have only been seven players in NBA history to match or exceed these numbers over the course of a full season, all of whom currently are or will eventually be in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
This exclusive list reads as follows:
Not only is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander vying for his first All-Star nod this season but, as things currently stand, he’s knocking on the door of history.
Should he stay on this course for the remainder of the year, his name will be etched in alongside these aforementioned GOATs.
Not bad for a third-year pro.