Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made history in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 104-102 win over the Boston Celtics at Paycom Center on Thursday. Gilgeous-Alexander broke Wilt Chamberlain’s record by recording his 127th 20-point game in a row on the night, and former NBA player Sam Dekker had some high praise for him afterward.
Dekker stated on The Starting Lineup on SiriusXM NBA Radio that Gilgeous-Alexander is the third-best guard he’s ever watched, after Michael Jordan and Stephen Curry.
“This might sound crazy,” Dekker said. “He’s the third-best guard I think I’ve ever watched…. MJ, Curry, and Shai.”
That does indeed sound crazy. Dekker is ranking Gilgeous-Alexander ahead of the likes of Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson. They’re two of the all-time greats, but that is the trajectory he is on as well.
Gilgeous-Alexander has won one title, one Finals MVP, one MVP, and one scoring title. The 27-year-old is the MVP frontrunner right now, and the Thunder are the favorites to win the NBA championship as well.
Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 31.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 6.6 assists, 1,4 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game for the 52-15 Thunder in 2025-26. If he repeats as MVP and they defend their title, some serious conversations will need to be had about where exactly he ranks all-time.
Would you put Gilgeous-Alexander above Bryant and Johnson right now, though? Probably not.
Bryant won five titles, two Finals MVPs, one MVP, and two scoring titles in his storied career with the Los Angeles Lakers. As for fellow Lakers icon Johnson, he won five titles, three Finals MVPs, three MVPs, and four assists titles.
Gilgeous-Alexander needs to add more accolades to his resume to be in the conversation with these two. There is no reason to believe he won’t. Gilgeous-Alexander aspires to be better than Bryant, his idol, and time will tell whether he will be.
Getting back to Dekker’s list, it’s also a bit surprising to see Curry ahead of Bryant. You won’t find too many who’d rank the Golden State Warriors superstar higher. Curry does have a great resume, though, having won four titles, one Finals MVP, two MVPs, and two scoring titles.
As for Jordan being atop Dekker’s list, that wasn’t a surprise. The Chicago Bulls icon won six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, one DPOY, and 10 scoring titles in his career. Jordan is still generally regarded as the greatest player of all time, let alone the greatest guard.
Dekker was never supposed to be anywhere near as good as the players mentioned here, but still didn’t quite live up to expectations. The Houston Rockets selected him with the 18th pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, and he’d only play five seasons in the league.
Dekker last played for the Toronto Raptors in 2021 and has finished his NBA career with averages of 5.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game.
While success in the NBA was hard to come by for Dekker, he has done well overseas. Most notably, he won two British Basketball League titles with the London Lions in 2023 and 2024. He was also named MVP in 2023.
