NBA All-Star Weekend Gives Glimpse Into Thunder’s Bright Future

With representation from three different players in Salt Lake City, the Oklahoma City Thunder stayed busy at NBA All-Star Weekend.

Jalen Williams and Josh Giddey both participated in the Rising Stars Challenge, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played in Sunday night’s NBA All-Star Game. This trio is incredibly talented and had the opportunity to represent Oklahoma City on the big stage.

It’s been a successful season to this point for the Thunder, which goes to show just how bright the future of the franchise is. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James even gave his praises to Giddey and the Thunder over the weekend.

“Josh Giddey is really, really good, man. Obviously, a tall point guard. He is a triple-double-type of playmaker every single night because of his ability to rebound at his size, his distinctive passing and he has the ability to score in the paint. I think he is going to continue to get better and better,” James said. “They have a really good young core over in OKC. They don’t even have Chet [Holmgren] there just yet.”

Giddey was one of the best players in the Rising Stars Challenge, flashing the Playmaking ability that James referred to. In the first round of the event, he notched a game-high six assists which was more than the opposing roster produced as a team. Giddey was actually able to play alongside Williams in this competition, as they were both drafted to the same team. Williams produced six points, six rebounds and four assists in two games at the event.

These two Thunder prospects were an integral part of their team making it to the championship game, where they ultimately fell by five points.

Gilgeous-Alexander was sitting courtside for the Rising Stars Challenge, showing support to his two teammates. This meant a lot to Williams, who discussed how close this Thunder roster is on and off the court. He even committed to returning the favor and said he would be attending Gilgeous-Alexander’s game on Sunday night.

Two nights later, the time had come for the main event, as 24 of the best players around the league matched up in the 72nd NBA All-Star Game. As promised, Williams was in attendance wearing Gilgeous-Alexander’s jersey.

“That’s my little brother. He better wear my jersey,” said Gilgeous-Alexander of Williams after the game. “It’s funny because I wore his the day of his game. That was the first time him seeing his own jersey was on me. So I kinda figured he’d do something.”

For the first time ever, the NBA All-Star rosters were drafted live just before tip-off. Gilgeous-Alexander was the fifth reserve to be selected, as he joined Giannis Antetokounmpo’s team.

The first-time All-Star didn’t play much in the game, but did have the opportunity to showcase his skills in limited action. His time on the court was split up in two separate chunks, the first of which came in the second quarter as he started that frame following no action in the first.

Gilgeous-Alexander finished with five points and five assists in his first six minutes on the floor, getting the work done early. He played again for a few minutes in the third quarter and ultimately finished the contest with nine points, seven assists and two rebounds in just 10 minutes of action while going 4-for-5 from the floor.

“Once I kinda felt how the minutes were gonna go, I tried to get a double-double or triple-double or something like that. Just trying to play a different game,” said Gilgeous-Alexander postgame.

The 24-year-old showed his selfless nature, as he seemed to be more focused on setting up his teammates over scoring his own points. While he didn’t achieve the double-double, he got close.

“I’m just honored to be here playing with the best players in the world. Just getting to showcase my skills on this stage,” said Gilgeous-Alexander Sunday night. “Just tried to soak it up as much as possible.”

Following this successful weekend, these three pieces of the Thunder core will have time off before heading back to Salt Lake City on Thursday to take on the Jazz. As the final stretch of the 2022-23 campaign awaits, Oklahoma City is 28-29 and tenth in the Western Conference.

The Thunder have a clear path to the postseason, but it will take a strong close to the season.