LA Clippers point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander isn’t a star just yet, but in the four years he may spend with Kawhi Leonard, he could become one.
LA Clippers point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may not have made the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team this past season, but during the course of his first year in the league, he proved that he’s got what it takes to end up being one of the best players taken in his draft class — and one of the best point guards in the NBA.
Gilgeous-Alexander started the season on the bench, but it didn’t take long for the rook to force his way into the starting rotation. His first start came in the Clippers’ tenth game of the season, and it would be a role he wouldn’t give up for the rest of the year. He played in all 82 of LA’s regular season games in 2018-2019, and started in all six of their playoff games as well.
He was effective during the first half of the season, though he looked lost every so often. The rookie wall appeared to hit him more than once. Some games he would look like a heady veteran, others he couldn’t get a shot to fall.
That all changed after the Tobias Harris trade went through on the morning of February 6. Over the course of LA’s final 27 regular season games, Gilgeous-Alexander made a tremendous leap forward, both in terms of how comfortable he looked and in his statistics.
In those games, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 12.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in just under 28 minutes per game. He also shot 50.0 percent from the field and 43.6 percent from three-point range — both of which were improvements over his numbers from the first half of the season.
His confident play carried into the playoffs as well, bringing his numbers up to 13.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 3.2 assists on 46.7 shooting from the field and 50.0 from range. He scored a career-high 25 points in Game 4, and capped his rookie season off by recording 22 points, five rebounds and six assists in Game 6.
He’s not quite a star yet, but he’s got plenty of potential to become one — and that’s something that could be enticing for two-way star Kawhi Leonard as he makes his decision in free agency.
Per a report from ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, it sounds as though Leonard would be most interested in joining the Clippers if they can find a second star to pair him with. The free agent market has run dry on that now, but given the potential of the Clippers’ rookies, it’s not hard to imagine Gilgeous-Alexander becoming one over the course of the next few seasons.
That would especially be true the longer he plays alongside and practices with Leonard. Given Shai’s two-way potential and low-key demeanor, Leonard could become a mentor to the young point guard and teach him how he can maximize his potential.
Of course, Leonard would likely want a star as soon as possible — which the LA Clippers could still add, just not via free agency.
The franchise has stockpiled assets during the course of the season as well as this summer, securing two future-first round picks from the Miami Heat via the Harris and Maurice Harkless trades. There are also numerous players with high trade values on the roster, including Danilo Gallinari, Jerome Robinson, Lou Williams, Montrezl Harrell and Landry Shamet.
Some of those players would be off the table in most scenarios, but the Clippers would be wise to have pitched Leonard on the fact that they’d be willing to trade for a star to pair him with as soon as possible.
Bradley Beal seems to be a target of interest for numerous teams, and few make more sense than the LA Clippers. The Washington Wizards aren’t interested in dealing their star shooting guard just yet, but it’s hard to imagine him staying with the franchise for the duration of the 2019-2020 season.
If the Clippers left Leonard confident with their plans to pair him with a star, him coming to Los Angeles would certainly seem like a more likely scenario. And in addition to that, speaking highly of Gilgeous-Alexander’s potential to become an All-Star during the course of what would be a four-year max for Leonard couldn’t have hurt, either.
It’s still not certain what Leonard will do when it comes time for him to make his decision, but the LA Clippers have plenty going right for their franchise at the moment. Gilgeous-Alexander’s star potential is hardly scratching the surface.