When Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was busy putting in work this past summer to improve his off-ball scoring production, the belief was that guys like Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren would end up shouldering a larger share of the handling workload. This was believed to be the best approach to allow the OKC Thunder cornerstone to play more freely and conserve energy.
In a rather unfortunate turn of events, Oklahoma City has been ravaged by injuries here in 2026-27, most notably affecting the two aforementioned ballers, which, as a result, has left SGA with less star power surrounding him.
Excitingly enough, however, this doesn't seem to have stopped the Thunder from allowing Shai to frequently roam without the rock in his hands, as Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain, and even rookie Bennett Stirtz at times have been seen taking on lead handler duties quite often here in the infancy stages of the year.
The eye test isn't the only thing that's backing this claim, of course, as The Ringer's Kevin O'Connor recently revealed the NBA's top-seven players when it comes to percentage of time spent with the ball in their hands and, interestingly enough, Gilgeous-Alexander is nowhere to be found.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander still adopting off-ball play amid Thunder injuries
Now, due to the widespread injury woes for this Thunder squad, the vast majority of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's scoring production is still coming off unassisted looks.
However, his efficiency when hoisting up shots when off the ball is as good as it's ever been throughout his nine-year pro career.
Right now, the reigning two-time MVP finds himself cashing in on a whopping 75.0 percent of his attempts off the catch and an even more absurd 87.5 percent from beyond the arc while boasting a lethal 104.2 effective field goal percentage.
This high-end success rate of his when off the catch is obviously a direct result of his offseason training, but also because of the immense gravity breakout star Ajay Mitchell has been putting on opposing defenses since the club's devastating matchup against the LA Clippers back on October 25.
Following that fateful night, Mitchell has become SGA's clear number two, and has been dropping a ridiculous 22.1 points per game on 53.6 percent shooting from the floor, leaving opponents with no other option but to focus nearly half of their attention and efforts on trying to contain him.
Naturally, this has drawn eyes away from SGA and, in turn, has helped get him into cleaner off-ball sets, where he's been making clubs pay.
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