April 8, 2026, Inglewood, California, USA: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder pushes off John Collins 20 of the Los Angeles Clippers during their regular season NBA, Basketball Herren, USA game on Wednesday April 8, 2026 at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Clippers lose to Thunder, 128-110. ARIANA RUIZ/PI Inglewood USA - ZUMAp124 20260408_zaa_p124_135 Copyright: xArianaxRuizx
April 8, 2026, Inglewood, California, USA: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder pushes off John Collins 20 of the Los Angeles Clippers during their regular season NBA, Basketball Herren, USA game on Wednesday April 8, 2026 at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Clippers lose to Thunder, 128-110. ARIANA RUIZ/PI Inglewood USA - ZUMAp124 20260408_zaa_p124_135 Copyright: xArianaxRuizx
The OKC Thunder's guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has established himself as one of the best scorers in this generation. But an NBA analyst suggests he mirrors Michael Jordan.
SGA won his second consecutive MVP award last season. He was the best player on the best team in the NBA. It made his case undeniable. But before SGA won the award, analyst Zach Lowe pointed to a Jordan-esque stat that made his case stronger.
"[Shai's] Clutch numbers are outrageous, and this is Jordan, but in the modern era," Lowe said on The Zach Lowe Show on March 31. "That’s how good he is offensively, and I just think you put all that together, he’s the MVP for me."
April 8, 2026, Inglewood, California, USA: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives past Derrick Jones Jr. 5 of the Los Angeles Clippers during their regular season NBA, Basketball Herren, USA game on Wednesday April 8, 2026 at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Clippers lose to Thunder, 128-110. ARIANA RUIZ/PI Inglewood USA - ZUMAp124 20260408_zaa_p124_145 Copyright: xArianaxRuizx
April 8, 2026, Inglewood, California, USA: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives past Derrick Jones Jr. 5 of the Los Angeles Clippers during their regular season NBA, Basketball Herren, USA game on Wednesday April 8, 2026 at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Clippers lose to Thunder, 128-110. ARIANA RUIZ/PI Inglewood USA - ZUMAp124 20260408_zaa_p124_145 Copyright: xArianaxRuizx
NBA officially defines clutch time as the last five minutes of the 4th quarter or overtime, given that the point differential between both teams is five points or less.
Last season, Shai had the elite numbers in the league in clutch. Among players with 20+ games, he led the league with 6.5 points. SGA shot 51.5% from the field and recorded +3.4 in Plus/Minus.
"They both elevate their teams—Wembanyama’s on-off is from neutral to incredible, Shai’s on-off is from pretty good to incredible," Lowe added on The Zach Lowe Show. "The incredible part matters to me more than where the off-court number is. It’s like, are you elevating your team to 'Holy s***, this is a machine'? That’s Shai."
It's incredible what Victor Wembanyama achieved last season. He became the first unanimous Defensive Player of the Year. But his impact didn't match SGA's, who has been putting up similar numbers to Jordan.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's scoring run has placed him in Michael Jordan's category
Luka Doncic has been largely considered arguably the most gifted scorer in modern basketball. However, the scoring numbers have shifted the conversation in favor of SGA.
In the last few years, the Thunder star has put together historic numbers. After the 2025-26 season, he joined the exclusive list with Michael Jordan.
SGA has scored 30 or more points in each of his last four seasons. He is the only player since Michael Jordan to average 30+ points in four consecutive NBA seasons.
In the last four seasons, SGA has averaged 31.4 points (2022-23), 30.1 points (2023-24), 32.7 points (2024-25), and 31.1 points (2025-26).
That being said, do you think Shai Gilgeous-Alexander can keep this streak alive? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Read more at the Air Jordan Chronicles!
Written by
Nandjee Ranjan
Edited by
Shubhi Rathore