In ESPN’s Zach Lowe’s latest “10 NBA things” column that was released this past Friday, he gave Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander some love. Lowe talked about the unorthodox style of Gilgeous-Alexander’s driving game and how uniquely methodological he is.
“Gilgeous-Alexander’s fourth season — and last before his maximum extension kicks in — should be considered a raging success. I don’t really care that his shooting efficiency has declined; that’s expected for any young-ish centerpiece on a rebuild this deep.
He’s averaging a league-high 34 drives per 100 possessions. He has maintained decent efficiency on those drives, and a nice pass-or-shoot balance — borderline miracles given the talent around him. He draws heaps of shooting fouls, and has turned the ball over on only 5.9% of drives — 36th lowest among 255 players with at least 100 drives, per Second Spectrum.
Gilgeous-Alexander just gets wherever he wants. Nothing feels forced. His movements are jagged and arrhythmic — hard to anticipate, harder to grasp. He seems to move fast and slow, and in every direction, at once. Tracking Gilgeous-Alexander is the NBA version of eating soup with a fork.”
With the Thunder being a small market rebuilding team, it’s nice to see Gilgeous-Alexander, who has been one of the best scorers in the league since the All-Star break, receive some national media love, especially from someone as prominent like Lowe. With the Thunder rebuilding progressing and the team naturally getting better due to mature and younger talent, Gilgeous-Alexander should soon receive more attention from a national perspective.