Paul George Praises Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: ‘Oklahoma Got a Star’
In this story:
When Paul George was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in 2019, he was far and away the best player in the deal. Now, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s rise to superstardom, the argument could definitely be made for Oklahoma City’s MVP candidate.
George, who started his own podcast called Podcast P with Paul George, had nothing but praise for Gilgeous-Alexander recently, years after the famous trade.
“Man Shai is nice,” George exclaimed. “Like I don’t even know who to compare him to. He’s got his own lane. People don’t understand, he’s bigger than you thin, he might look small on the court, but he’s like 6-foot-6 bro.
“Shift, plays at his own speed, he’s deceptively quick. He’s gonna rock you to sleep and then blow by you, everything is just pace. Slow-to-fast, fast-to-slow, he’s going to throw you off — your timing off. You might be in front of him, you might stop him, and you relax — and he’ll boom, attack you right again. You’re like ‘ah sh— I thought I had you.”
Despite being traded for one another, there's no bad blood between PG-13 and SGA. The trade sent the franchises in different directions, and ultimately, it was what was best for each organization at the time. It will always look like a lopsided trade package, but that's because the fine print will never include that it was needed to get Kawhi Leonard, too.
Hindsight is 20-20 with Gilgeous-Alexander, as nobody could've predicted this level of progression. Oklahoma City took a chance, and it's paying off tenfold now.
“It’s no rivalry bro, I want the best for him,” George said. “Im happy he’s succeeding, like, watching him, seeing what he’s doing, I don’t think nobody predicted he’d be this good. He’s elite, he’s one of the best young guys that don’t get talked about enough — but it’s no rivalry.
"He’s not somebody I look at like ‘I gotta out compete him.’ Just because of the trade, when it happened, I reached out to him and said, ‘Yo kid, you just do you. Keep hooping, I’m a big fan of yours. It’s love between me and him."
As both teams battle down the stretch to position themselves for the postseason, it would be fun to see George and SGA square off in the playoffs someday. George's comments on his podcast show the two are friendly off the court no matter what, though.
Want to join the discussion? Like SI Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.
