The OKC Thunder are so chock full of elite defensive players to the point where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's talents have regularly floated under the radar.
Just this past season, the superstar boasted a lethal 105.2 defensive rating and ranked second in the entire league in defensive win shares (0.179), yet, even still, he's not even remotely considered to be in the conversation of top 25 defenders today.
Now, heading into the 2026-27 campaign, Shai finds himself with a prime opportunity to add yet another remarkable feat to his criminally underrated defensive resume, as he's just 18 blocks away from surpassing John Wall for the most shots swatted by a point guard in NBA history.
Right now, the Thunder cornerstone has accumulated 422 blocks throughout his eight-year career. Considering he averages roughly 53 blocks per season, with his lowest registering in at just 23 back during his plantar fasciitis-shortened 2020-21 season, it seems safe to assume he'll wind up claiming the record for himself at some point between now and April.
Offensive genius may be masking Thunder star's defensive excellence
While it may sound somewhat odd, Shai's offensive genius may be coming at a slight disadvantage when it comes to gaining the respect he rightfully deserves as a defender.
In many ways, Gilgeous-Alexander's legendary scoring somewhat overshadows his efforts on the less glamorous side of the ball.
That's just the nature of how the modern, offensively-driven era of the sport is.
His averages of 31.3 points per game on 52.9 percent shooting from the floor and 36.8 percent shooting from deep seem to completely mask the 488 steals and ridiculously active 917 deflections he's recorded along the way.
On top of this, he also has the fortunate situation where he's constantly being surrounded by unbelievable defensive talents.
From Lu Dort and Jalen Williams to Chet Holmgren and Cason Wallace, the Thunder have had a number of All-Defensive talents suit up for the club over the last several years, with the latter two just finishing second and seventh, respectively, in the Defensive Player of the Year race this past season.
It's by no means Gilgeous-Alexander's fault that he's one of the best scoring weapons in the league today and is accompanied by a slew of top-flight dogs on the less glamorous side of the ball, yet, for some reason, it appears these factors may be held against him when the public assesses his defensive attributes.
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