Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder proves to be one of the best scoring superstars in the NBA. Ahead of the Thunder's game against the Denver Nuggets on Monday, he was close to reaching a career milestone.
Gilgeous Alexander continues to score at least 20 points for 125 straight games. He is the only active player in the league to have that many games played and that many points. Currently, he is No. 2 on the list of players with the most consecutive games played with 20 points.
The only player in front of him is the late Wilt Chamberlain, who had 126 straight games of scoring 20 points from 1961 to 1963.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Tied Wilt Chamberlain's Record
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On Monday, Gilgeous-Alexander tied Chamberlain's record by reaching the 20-point mark before the fourth quarter. The league recognized his feat on X.
"126 STRAIGHT 20+ POINT GAMES 🚨" the NBA posted. "Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has tied Wilt Chamberlain's all-time record!"
According to ESPN, the Thunder racked up 4,057 points in the 125 games he played, scoring over 20 points. Aside from scoring, the reigning league MVP has also collected 582 rebounds and 803 assists during that span.
SGA has the chance to overtake the NBA legend on Thursday against the Boston Celtics if he scores at least 20 points. In an ESPN article written by Tim MacMahon on Monday, the Thunder star shared his opinion of Chamberlain. Gilgeous-Alexander belongs to the generation that missed out on the dominance of the "Big Dipper."
"Not much besides he was pretty insanely dominant," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Based on the stats, did whatever he wanted and was like ... Honestly, it feels almost like a mythical creature. It's not real."
This season, Gilgeous-Alexander is No. 2 in points per game with 31.6. Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic is at the top of the list, averaging 32.5 points through 52 games played. The Thunder star has not scored less than 20 points this season.
SGA continues to be an offensive nightmare for the defense. He can score efficiently anywhere, making 54.9% of his attempts from the field and 38.1% from beyond the 3-point arc. The four-time All-Star is also a reliable shooter from the free-throw line, making 89.5% through 9.3 attempts per game.
With his scoring, Gilgeous-Alexander is progressively establishing himself in the league as he consistently hits certain milestones. There are still a few games left in the season, and he could set a longer streak than Chamberlain.
