OKC Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been under fire for his "foul baiting" tendencies ever since he put his team on the map with a dominant championship run last season.
From the constant barrage of social media accusations to receiving a barrage of "free-throw merchant" chants when on the road, the NBA world has constructed a narrative that involves SGA strictly relying on getting to the line to achieve his numbers.
The accusations have even gone viral to the point of public lambasting from well-known celebrities.
Recently, however, Shai has set out to disprove this narrative -- and has done so in quite a dominant fashion.
Since December 5, SGA hasn't attempted double-digit free throws in a single game. In those games, he has shot an unheralded 59 percent from the floor, 41 percent from three, and 92 percent from the free-throw line.
He is also averaging 30.8 points per game throughout this stretch.
Even though the mark is below his season average, he is averaging only 19.4 shots in those games, which is 0.3 attempts fewer than his previous 22 games and 2.4 attempts fewer than his MVP campaign last season.
Simply put, Shai has responded to his critics by not missing the basket.
Thunder star has responded to the hate with indisputable efficiency
The Thunder point guard is currently on pace for the most efficient season by a guard with a 30-plus percent usage rate since Steph Curry's historic 2015-2016 MVP campaign.
Even after a miraculous season last year in which SGA took home these same illustrious honors himself, he has somehow figured out a way to elevate his game. His numbers from last year to this year are nearly identical, even as his usage has dipped 1.7 percent.
Meanwhile, his total efficiency rating of 61.4 percent is 4.5 percent higher than his mark last season.
Shai's recent efficiency boost has benefited the rest of Thunder
As a result of Shai doing less with more over the past 12 games, his supporting cast has had the opportunity to reach new heights in their development.
Players like Chet Holmgren, Ajay Mitchell, and others have taken significant advantage of the cornerstone's decreased usage and fewer free throws.
Chet's points per game have bumped up to 18.1 points per game, up from 15.0 last season. He's also shooting 59.5 percent from the floor and 45.7 percent from beyond the arc in this aforementioned span.
Mitchell, meanwhile, is shooting 53.8 percent and hitting threes at a 37.5 percent clip in those games, both of which are up significantly from his full-season totals in 2024-25.
Because of Shai's recent dominance, the Thunder have found themselves taking part in even more blowout victories than usual. As a result, fringe-rotation players like Chris Youngblood, Branden Carlson, and Ousmane Dieng have all gotten an extended chance to showcase their talents.
In the past 12 games, the three players' averages combine for 25.7 points per game, with Dieng playing in two of those games, Youngblood playing in eight, and Carlson playing in 10.
With Shai not needing the basketball as much to reach his usual metrics, this Thunder team has been able to do the unthinkable: get even better than they already were.
This bodes well for their odds of repeating as NBA Champions, as OKC will need every man on its roster to be primed and ready for such a feat.