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OKC Thunder Superstar Gets Key to Hometown
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gestures to the crowd as the Oklahoma City Thunder celebrate their first NBA Finals title win with a champions parade throughout downtown Oklahoma City on Tuesday, June 24, 2025. Mandatory Credit: Bryan Terry/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images Oklahoman-Imagn Images

OKC Thunder Superstar Gets Key to Hometown

Originally posted on Oklahoma City Thunder on SI
By Rylan Stiles  |  Last updated Aug 8, 2025 2:31 PM ET

What a season and what a year it has been for Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

It was a 68-win campaign for the OKC Thunder, which ended with the team's first championship, a run spearheaded by Gilgeous-Alexander, who bagged the NBA MVP award, Western Conference Finals MVP, and NBA Finals MVP in a historic season.

The Kentucky product led the league in scoring, was tabbed to his third straight All-NBA team, just as many All-Star nods, released his first signature shoe with a new color way debuting each round of the NBA Playoffs and signed a massive four-year $272.4 million extension this summer after prancing around downtown Oklahoma City in his first ever championship parade.

What a year.

The celebration didn't end there, the proud Canadian returned home to Hamilton on Thursday, where he not only had a street named after him –– "Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Way" –– but earned a key to the city.

This is a massive achievement for Gilgeous-Alexander and is much deserved. It goes beyond basketball, though the Thunder superstar is quickly cementing himself as the best Canadian hooper of all time, to his off the floor contributions as well.

The reverence the Thunder point guard has when talking about his hometown can clearly give a look behind the scenes of what this means to him. He not only represents his Hamilton extremely well but returns every offseason and invests in the community –– look no further than Thursday's celebration.

On a day that was all about lifting up Gilgeous-Alexander with a rally in his hometown that saw him bring the Larry O'Brien trophy to his community and receive well-deserved flowers for his historic accomplishments, he took the time to visit the hospital for sick children in Toronto.

The Thunder superstar did so with the help of the SickKids foundation, where he spent time signing autographs, hosting basketball bingo, engaging with the kids and fielding questions in a Q&A at the event.

"It's what you do everything for, to put a smile on people's faces, to inspire people," Gilgeous-Alexander said.

Oklahoma City has seen first hand the investment into a community the superstar offers and how important it is to him to use his platform to uplift people.

This is on the same day that Converse revealed the public release of his first signature shoe the SHAI 001s that will launch on Sept. 4 with a retail price of just $130.

What a year.


This article first appeared on Oklahoma City Thunder on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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