Is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander a trade candidate going into NBA Draft?

The July 29 NBA Draft is coming nearer and nearer, and with teams looking to make the most of their current positions, trades are starting to come in.

The Pelicans and Grizzlies completed a deal yesterday which sent former Kentucky Wildcats guard Eric Bledsoe to Memphis. There is another former Wildcat, this time, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, that is being dubbed as available.

Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer wrote that teams are keeping an “eye” on him.

“And the next All-Star-caliber player team personnel currently eye as available: Oklahoma City point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who’s suddenly eligible to sign a projected five-year, $168 million rookie scale extension this summer. It would appear, however, any interested team would need to meet the Thunder’s significant asking price. ‘It’s going to take a f—king lot to get him, but he’s no longer impossible to get,’ said one team executive,” Fischer wrote.

While Fischer did note that he’s being looked as available, the executive he quoted is correct — it’s not going to be easy to trade for SGA. He should be one of the most coveted young assets.

The former lottery pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, SGA has blossomed into one of the best guards in the NBA. He averaged 23.7 points per game his third season in the league, drastically improving in each of his three seasons in the NBA.

SGA also shot over 50% from the field for the first time in his career. 5.9 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 2.0 threes, and a terrific free-throw shooter — Gilgeous-Alexander is the full package.

Having just turned 23, the sky is the limit for the young guard. It’s tough to even gauge what a deal could be centered around, especially already knowing the vast array of picks the Thunder have.

Could the Thunder have sought out the No. 1 overall pick for a combination of assets that included SGA?

Any legitimate offer would’ve included both SGA and the No. 6 overall pick along with potentially a few other low-value first-round picks. That just goes to show the stardom many think Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham has.

SGA is good enough that any trade will be an instant blockbuster, but I wouldn’t expect a deal to get done.