When Shai Gilgeous-Alexander exploded for a career-high 54 points in a late-January game, it started a flood of plaudits for the gifted Oklahoma City Thunder guard. It also left the NBA surprised that he hadn’t done it before.
It took Gilgeous-Alexander 428 NBA games to reach the 50-point mark 鈥 not because he lacked the skill but more because the selfless all-star never felt the need to 鈥 but now that he has reached that level, he鈥檚 become a regular at the half-century plateau.
He did it again about a week later. He’s done it two more times since then. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Fifty pieces stacked up, as if the Hamilton product reached a rare plane and loved it there.
鈥淗e works at his game, always,鈥 said Hall of Famer Vince Carter, a guy who knows a thing or two about NBA scoring. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not like he says, 鈥業鈥檝e had success, I鈥檓 good, I just need to maintain it.鈥
鈥淗e鈥檚 gotten better. His three-point shot鈥檚 gotten better, he gets fouled, he gets in the paint. He can get anywhere and hit different shots. It鈥檚 not like, 鈥榦h, he鈥檚 only going to hit one shot.鈥 He can do different things and he鈥檚 prepared for anything the defence throws at him.鈥
Shai聽Gilgeous-Alexander is just the 12th NBAer to get 50 or more points four times in a season.
Nate Billings/The Associated PressGilgeous-Alexander‘s four 50-point games came in a聽six-week span, one of the most blistering stretches of NBA scoring in recent years. The raw totals were impressive: 54 points in a win over Utah on Jan. 22; 52 when the Thunder lost to Golden State a week later; 50 more when Oklahoma City beat Phoenix on Feb. 5; and 51 in a victory over Houston on March 3.
A killer work ethic, supportive parents, visionary coaches and down-to-earth pals all had a hand in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s mind-blowing success
A killer work ethic, supportive parents, visionary coaches and down-to-earth pals all had a hand in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s mind-blowing success
The efficiency was eye-popping, too: 56 per cent shooting from the field, 40 per cent from three-point range, an unfathomable 92 per cent at the free-throw line.
And with 16 games left in the regular season before Friday night, Gilgeous-Alexander is just the 12th NBAer to get 50 or more points four times in a season. The others: Wilt Chamberlain, who did it eight times; Michael Jordan, who did it four times; Elgin Baylor and James Harden, three times each; Kobe Bryant, twice; and Rick Barry, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Pete Maravich, Russell Westbrook, Damian Lillard and Luka Doncic.
Only Chamberlain, Jordan, Bryant, Harden and Lillard have done it five times in a season.
Heady company. But maybe not a surprise to those who know him well.
鈥淗e鈥檚 just been a special player for some years now,鈥 said the Raptors’聽RJ Barrett, an NBA rival of Gilgeous-Alexander for years and his summer teammate with the Canadian men鈥檚 team. 鈥淗e鈥檚 such a hard worker and he鈥檚 so consistent with his work, every single day.
鈥淗e watches a lot of film, he really studies the game, studies everyone, the best players and his mindset. He thinks he鈥檚 the best one on the court at all times and he knows what he can do.鈥
There is not one single explanation for what Gilgeous-Alexander has been doing, it鈥檚 never that simple. Talking with coaches, players and scouts, the conversation about 鈥渨hy he鈥檚 on such a heater鈥 always meanders through myriad reasons.
Nasty handle to lay from Shai 馃槷鈥嶐煉
鈥 NBA (@NBA)
Thunder & Celtics battling on ESPN.
He is on a tremendous team; the Thunder are far ahead in the Western Conference and are battling with Cleveland for the best record in the NBA. And being on a stacked team is freeing for Gilgeous-Alexander; opponents are too often left to pick their poison and that allows him to dominate.
“When you鈥檙e going into the game, you think, should we try to stop their best player or do we focus on those other players, and he scores 50 and you鈥檙e going to live with that,鈥 Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic said. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e going to see more of those 50-piece games from teams like that.鈥
To be sure, Gilgeous-Alexander benefits from the presence of teammates Jalen Williams (he is averaging more than 21 points per game), Chet Holmgren, Lu Dort and Isaiah Hartenstein. But it’s also to his credit that he鈥檚 quite content with sharing the load and won鈥檛 hog the spotlight.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, left, celebrates with guard Luguentz Dort on the night he scored a career-high 54 points on Jan. 22.
Kyle Phillips/The Associated Press鈥淚f he wanted to do it, he would have done it a lot more,鈥 Barrett said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 reading what the game gives him.鈥
It goes both ways. His teammates know who鈥檚 who in the Thunder pecking order.
鈥淥bviously every player wishes he could get 50, but they understand their role with the team,鈥 Carter said of Gilgeous-Alexander鈥檚 teammates. 鈥淚f they make the game easy for him, he鈥檚 going to make the game easy for them as well.
It’s a two-man race for the NBA鈥檚 MVP award. We asked Doug Smith to make the early case for聽both Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
It’s a two-man race for the NBA鈥檚 MVP award. We asked Doug Smith to make the early case for聽both Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
鈥淭o be like that with a young group is top notch.鈥
The fullness of Gilgeous-Alexander鈥檚 skills are always expanding. That has been true through the plethora of 50-point games and a career-best season where he is averaging 32.8 points a game, which leads the NBA, and posting a career-best 58.3 per cent field-goal percentage.
He has been excellent for years, but he鈥檚 never been satisfied with that and you can bet four 50-pieces in 24 games will set him off on a search for the tools to do it more often.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a true pro, always finding ways to expand his game, ways to have a greater impact,鈥 Raptors broadcaster Alvin Williams said. 鈥淗e approaches it with a workmanlike mindset every day. I don鈥檛 think he takes any day off. Every time he鈥檚 on the court, he鈥檚 the same way. Brings the same intensity, works with the same effort.
鈥淵ou know some players, they may drift a little bit? He鈥檚 in the game every possession, some way or some other.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a bad boy.鈥
Bad, as in great.
To join the conversation set a first and last name in your user profile.
Sign in or register for free to join the Conversation