This summer, OKC Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has reportedly been working on his skills off the ball. Team Canada Senior Men's Basketball head coach Gordie Herbert has gone on record stating that this development could make Shai even "tougher to guard."
Adam Mares seems to fully believe this will be the case and suggests that the fruits of his labor should be on full display in next year's postseason.
During a recent episode of the All NBA Podcast, the long-time reporter stressed that this desired development in SGA's game will only add variety to his already elite on-court attack, which, in Mares' eyes, is clearly a good thing, as he argued, "you can become predictable if all you can do is one thing."
Over the last five years or so, Gilgeous-Alexander has become widely renowned for his elite isolation-heavy offensive approach, even leading the league in total points generated in such sets since 2022-23 with 2,093 points scored.
Now, he's looking to master his craft without the rock in his hands, and Mares believes this could throw an opposing team's defense "off balance," and even predicts that the Thunder cornerstone will become even more effective in clutch moments during the high-pressure playoffs moving forward.
SGA, Thunder are already the most clutch postseason club
Even without this aspect to his game, Gilgeous-Alexander has already established himself as the most clutch player the NBA has to offer what with his CPOY win just this past season.
What's more impressive is the fact that this level of production down the stretch of games lingered on into the postseason, as Shai led all players in clutch points per game (minimum three games played) while boasting an elite offensive rating of 117.1 during such situations.
Meanwhile, the Thunder as a whole were able to match his level in crunch-time situations, as they ranked first in clutch points per game throughout the 2026 NBA Playoffs with 16.0, nearly doubling the likes of the eventual champion New York Knicks' mark of 8.1 points per night.
With an added attribute like effective off-ball scoring from the two-time MVP, along with the healthy returns of key running mates like Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell, it's fair to assume that this Thunder squad should only become even more dangerous throughout all 48-plus minutes of in-game action during the 2026-27 campaign and, in turn, during the crucial moments late in the postseason.
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