The 2022-23 Oklahoma City Thunder’s season ended with the play-in tournament loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, which means it’s time for reflection.
Being one of the biggest overachievers in the league, the Thunder finished with a 40-42 record after being predicted by many to have high lottery odds.
Now that the season is in the books, let’s go back and evaluate all 19 players who suited up for the Thunder this past season. Grades will be handed out to every player in terms of what their expectations were heading into the season and how they lived up to them.
The first player in this installment is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who enjoyed the best season of his career and will likely earn All-NBA honors.
(Editor’s note: We are starting individual grades for all players from the 2022-23 Oklahoma City Thunder. To access other reviews as part of this ongoing series, click here.)
2022-23 statistics:
- 31.4 points
- 5.5 assists
- 4.8 rebounds
- 51% shooting
- 34.5% 3-point shooting
- 90.5% free-throw shooting
Advanced stats:
- True-shooting percentage: 62.6%
- Usage rate: 32.8%
- Win shares: 11.4
- VORP: 5.6
- Free-throw rate: 53.5%
- Steal percentage: 2.2%
Significant Percentile Finishes:
- Isolation scorer: 78.7 percentile
- Transition scorer: 76.2 percentile
- P&R ball-handler: 82.8 percentile
Contract:
- 2023-24: $33.4 million
- 2024-25: $35.9 million
- 2025-26: $38.3 million
- 2026-27: $40.8 million
Thoughts:
Heading into the season, it’s hard to imagine anybody reasonably expected Gilgeous-Alexander to have the type of year he had.
The 24-year-old turned in one of the greatest scoring efficiency seasons the league has ever seen. Only six other players in league history have averaged more than 31 points on 62-plus true-shooting percentage for a season.
After averaging over five 3-pointers last season, that shot was basically eradicated in Gilgeous-Alexander’s diet this year. He shot just 2.5 a game this season, his lowest average since his rookie campaign.
Instead, Gilgeous-Alexander’s scoring game relied heavily on driving to the basket and drawing fouls: 87.8% of his field goal attempts were 2-pointers. He led the league in drives per game for a third consecutive season by a wide margin — his 23.9 per game was nearly four more attempts than second-place Ja Morant’s 20.3.
However, Gilgeous-Alexander was a sneakily good midrange shooter, too: Half of his attempts were from that spot, and he shot a respectable 46.2% in that area, per Cleaning The Glass.
As mentioned, Gilgeous-Alexander unlocked the ability to get to the free-throw line at will, which essentially upgraded him to one of the best scorers in the league. He averaged a career-high 10.9 attempts — third-most in the league — and shot a career-high 90.5% from the line.
Gilgeous-Alexander showed hints of this last season, especially post-All-Star break, so carrying this over for an entire season isn’t that shocking. Nevertheless, it’s a critical development that dramatically raises OKC’s ceiling.
Eliminating his outside shot and being strictly a driver with a knack to get to the free-throw line on elite efficiency, Gilgeous-Alexander has blossomed into one of the league’s most prolific scorers.
Moving Forward:
I honestly don’t see how this cannot be sustainable for Gilgeous-Alexander. Nothing about his scoring efforts was flukey, and he should continue to get to the free-throw line at a high rate as his reputation grows.
Being an All-NBA first-team selection should definitely help with that — along with him playing politics with the referees.
The only concern I have is that having such a drive-heavy scoring game could eventually cause wear and tear on the body.
At 24 years old, that shouldn’t be a problem, but Gilgeous-Alexander already has a history of missing time due to lower leg injuries. A resurrection of a 3-point shot could offset that fear, and he’s shown the ability to hit it from outside at a decent clip — just two seasons ago, he averaged 4.9 3s on 41.8% shooting!
Regardless though, even if Gilgeous-Alexander’s development stagnates, which I don’t see why that would be the case barring health, it’s fair to say OKC should expect similar seasons like this for the foreseeable future as he enjoys his prime.
