Alright so I figured I’d dive into Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s early days today, specifically his time with the Clippers. Wanted to see the raw numbers before he blew up in OKC. Started simple: grabbed my coffee, fired up the laptop around 9 AM.
The Basic Search
Typed “Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Clippers stats” right into the search bar. Easy enough. Knew the main sites would have it, but just picked the first clean-looking numbers page. Wasn’t digging for super deep analysis, just wanted those basic rookie season digits burned into my brain.
Skimming The Numbers
Scrolled down quick. Focused on that first year – 2018-19. Your eyes kinda jump to the important stuff first:
- Games Played: Okay, 82 games? Kid played every damn night. That’s solid for a rookie.
- Minutes: Around 26 per game. Huh, more than I thought he got. Doc actually played him.
- Points: 10.8 points a night. Doesn’t sound like much now, but back then? Pretty decent for a rookie guard tossed into the mix.
- Rebounds & Assists: Snagged about 3 boards and dished out about 3 assists. Okay, okay. Not flashy, but shows he wasn’t just sitting in the corner.
Honestly, the efficiency jumped out at me. 47% from the field? That’s clean. And 36% from three? Way better than I expected back then. Showed he could pick his spots. Free throws? 80%. Even as a pup, dude could hit ’em at the line.
The Playoff Bump
Scrolled a bit more. Saw the playoff section. Only 6 games, but man, the numbers popped!
- Minutes: Jumped to over 28 a game? Doc trusted him.
- Points: Up to 13.7 against the Warriors? Against prime playoff Warriors? That takes guts.
- Shooting: Crazy! Hit 46% from deep on like 4 attempts per game? Kid wasn’t scared.
Biggest shocker? His Usage Rate. Barely broke 20% in the regular season, meaning he wasn’t forcing it. Played within the system with Lou Will, Gallo, Bev, all those guys. Definitely wasn’t the main guy.
Wrapping It Up
Leaned back in my chair around 9:45 AM, coffee half gone. The stuff I dug up? Pretty damn clear why OKC made that trade. Saw a young guard with good size who could finish, hit open shots, play within the flow, and wasn’t afraid of the bright lights. The numbers weren’t eye-popping superstar stuff yet, no triple-doubles, but you could see the potential lurking – the efficiency, the playoff composure. Makes you wonder “what if” he’d stuck around LA, but hey, worked out pretty good for Shai in the end. Fun little morning deep dive into where it all started.
