Five facts about Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA MVP and OKC Thunder superstar

The 1.98m point guard was named Finals’ Most Valuable Player after averaging 30.3 points, 5.6 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game over the seven matches. PHOTO: AFP

Hana Chen

UPDATED Jun 23, 2025, 06:28 PM

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SINGAPORE – How many times can you make history in a night? 

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may have just stopped counting. On June 22, the 26-year-old Canadian led Oklahoma City Thunder to win the 2024-25 National Basketball Association (NBA) championship by beating the Indiana Pacers 103-91 in Game 7 – the first time the team have won the championship since their rebrand and move to Oklahoma in 2008. They last won the title in 1979, as the Seattle Supersonics. 

The 1.98m point guard was named Finals’ Most Valuable Player (MVP) after averaging 30.3 points, 5.6 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game over the seven matches, making him the first to win both the regular-season MVP and Finals’ MVP in the same season since LeBron James did it with Miami Heat in 2013.

Here are five things to know about the three-time NBA All-Star.

1. He was traded minutes after he was drafted

After playing one season of college basketball with the University of Kentucky, Gilgeous-Alexander declared himself for the 2018 NBA draft. 

He was selected 11th overall pick by the Charlotte Hornets, who then immediately traded him to the Los Angeles Clippers for the 12th overall pick and two future second-round picks. 

It is not the first time that the Hornets traded away a future superstar during the draft. 

In 1996, they had the 13th overall pick, and chose then-17-year-old Kobe Bryant. They traded him away that night to the Los Angeles Lakers for Vlade Divac.

2. He comes from a family of athletes

Born in Toronto, Ontario, Gilgeous-Alexander comes from an athletic background.

His mother, Charmaine Gilgeous, competed as a sprinter for Antigua and Barbuda in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, though she did not make it past the heats of her event, the women’s 400m. She was also a five-time All-American athlete at the University of Alabama.

Basketball also runs in his blood – Gilgeous-Alexander’s father, Vaughn Alexander, played high school basketball and won a Toronto city championship, while his younger brother, Thomasi, played college basketball for the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division 1 team, the Evansville Purple Aces. 

His cousin, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, is also a professional basketballer, and is currently a shooting guard for the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

3. He’s the creative director for Converse Basketball

Gilgeous-Alexander has been representing Converse since signing an endorsement deal with them in July 2020. 

He took his partnership with the brand further in 2024, when he stepped up into the role of creative director for Converse Basketball. The next year, he debuted his signature shoe, the Converse SHAI 001. 

During this NBA season, Gilgeous-Alexander has continued to debut new colourways of his shoe, driving up excitement among fans for the shoe’s release this fall.

4. He’s joined the ranks of basketball legends

He also became the first player in 25 years to win the regular-season MVP, scoring title and Finals MVP in the same season. Gilgeous-Alexander is one of only four players to achieve this, joining the ranks of Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Shaquille O’Neal.

Four may be his lucky number – he is also one of four players to average at least 30 points per game for an NBA champion, regular season and play-offs combined. The other players are Jordan (1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93 and 1995-96), Abdul-Jabbar (1970-71) and Rick Barry (1974-75).

Gilgeous-Alexander and teammate Jalen Williams became the second-highest scoring duo in NBA Finals history, with a score of 377, just 21 points behind Lebron James and Kyrie Irving’s 2016 high score of 398 for the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

5. He’s a Canadian superstar

In 2023, Gilgeous-Alexander became the second basketballer after Steve Nash to receive the Northern Star award, which is awarded to the Canadian athlete of the year. 

It was the same year he won a bronze medal at the 2023 Fiba World Cup with the Canadian national team. 

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