Shy Gilgauss Alexander to the Oklahoma City Thunder turns out to be one of the most biased transactions in NBA history.
The Oklahoma City Thunder is one of the Western Conference’s favourites at the 2025 NBA Finals.
After all, they are the first seed in the conference thanks to superstar Shay Gilgauss Alexander’s MVP caliber season.
However, when it was traded with OKC by the Los Angeles Clippers in 2019, SGA rarely predicted a rise in SGA’s stardom.
After breaking up with the Indiana Pacers, Paul George regained stardom along with Russell Westbrook of Thunder.
In fact, George scored the highest number of his career during the 2018-19 NBA season. He averaged 28.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. However, the Thunder faced the first exit in their second consecutive season.
This led to some major discourse between the sides, and the Clippers decided to take advantage of it. how? By getting George through the Block Bastertrede package.
- OKC Thunder received: Shy Gilgauss Alexander, Danilo Garinari, Miami Heat’s 2021 first round pick, La Clippers’ 2022 first round pick, La Clippers’ 2023 first round pick, La Clippers’ 2023 first round pick, La Clippers’ 2025 first round pick, Miami Heat’s 2025 first round pick (2026, first round pick) Clippers’ 2025 unprotected first round pick
- LA Clippers received: Paul George
Yes, that’s all. The Clippers split up with these assets to pair George and Kawi Leonard, hoping to win the NBA Championship.
If the transaction is balanced, there are a few transactions that can be discussed. But fast forward to 2025, the Clippers definitely lost the OKC deal.
First of all, they lost the MVP caliber player at Gilgauss Alexander. On top of that, one of their draft picks led to the Thunder drafting Jalen Williams. If that’s not enough, the Thunder also has the right to two future picks.
However, this enormous cost would have been justified if the Clippers won the NBA Championship. Unfortunately, the Clippers were unable to even reach the NBA Finals during their time at George Leonardo, not to mention lifting the Larry O’Brien trophy.
The final nail of ffin was when George left the team for free last summer and joined the Philadelphia 76ers in a four-year, $212 million deal.
Meanwhile, the Thunder currently has a 64-14 record in the West, with the SGA predicted to lead to an NBA title soon.