Richard Jefferson Claims Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Is “Like Jokic as a Guard”, Dives Into His Greatness

Joseph Galizia | 05/03/2026
Mar 10, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) drives against Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) during the second half at Paycom Center.

After leading the NBA in scoring and winning MVP during the Oklahoma City Thunder’s championship run last season, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is producing another statistical masterpiece this year. He is averaging around 30 points a night with remarkable ease, and his dominance is already drawing comparisons to some of the greatest players in league history.

Even better for Oklahoma City, the wins keep coming. The defending champions sit at 48-15 and once again hold the No. 1 seed in the West, while SGA’s scoring brilliance remains a constant talking point across NBA media.

During a recent ESPN broadcast, retired star Richard Jefferson praised the Thunder guard’s rise. Jefferson opened the segment by wondering whether fans might be witnessing the emergence of a future GOAT before comparing his impact to Nikola Jokic.

“To me he’s like Jokic as a guard. It’s like after a while its like ‘wait, is this dude one of the greatest of all time?’ Is he putting on one of the greatest stretches?” asked the former Nets and Cavaliers player. “He’s averaged 30 points a game in four straight seasons. That puts you amongst elite category.”

Not only did Jefferson pull up the name of some greats who averaged 30-points seasons, but he showed how Shai has already surpassed them. “Shaq did it zero times. D-Wade, the monster, one. Dominique Wilkins two times. Kobe three. Shai has more than all of them,” Jefferson revealed.

That’s crazy. For one, you have to consider the difference in eras and recognize that today’s NBA is a much higher-scoring game. That isn’t meant to detract from what Shai is doing. If anything, it highlights the greatness of Dominique‘s game since he did it at a time when there were almost no rules protecting offensive players on the defensive end.

“We need to take a moment, give some love, and give some appreciation to what he’s able to do,” added RJ.

Last year, the Thunder were slept on until they won it all. Many suggested that Jokic should have received the MVP trophy for a fourth time. That argument mostly comes down to preference.

But there is no way a true lover of basketball can watch how efficient SGA has been and not be impressed. He barely shoots threes either. Most of his points come from mid range, post ups, 16 footers, and the occasional three. It is truly remarkable. And there are still 18 games to go.

So maybe Jefferson is right. Maybe we are witnessing the beginning of an iconic run that will not be fully appreciated until it is over. Basketball fans love to reminisce about the days of Magic, Jordan, Kobe, and soon LeBron. But while doing that, they should not miss what is happening in the present.

Post Edited By: Somin Bhattacharjee
Oklahoma City Thunder Richard Jefferson Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

About the author

Joseph Galizia

Joseph is a Las Vegas based actor and circus performer. For the last seven years he's had the pleasure of covering sports for multiple outlets, including the Lifestyles section of Sports Illustrated. In that time, he's conducted over 50 interviews with athletes, filmmakers, and company founders to further cement his footprint in the journalism world. He's excited to bring that skillset to the SportsRush, where he'll be covering the NBA news cycle.

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