Quiet superstar: Canada's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander the face of new Thunder era

Ever since the Seattle SuperSonics relocated to Oklahoma City and were renamed the Thunder, the team has had a close connection with the local Boys and Girls Clubs. Star players like Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant have donated their time and money to the organization that provides voluntary after-school programs for young people.

But Canada's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder's current NBA MVP candidate, is a different kind of superstar.

"I would say SGA flies under the radar a little bit more but his impact is as deep or deeper than any player," said Teena Belcik, president and CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Oklahoma County. "It's hard to compare because they've all been wonderful and we've had so many who have reached out and done something for our kids.

"But SGA has made it maybe a little more personal. Maybe that's the way to say it."

A recent example of how Gilgeous-Alexander's approach has been more one-on-one was this past December when he took a group of 20 Boys and Girls Club members on a shopping spree at a local sporting goods store before the holidays. Belcik said that Gilgeous-Alexander didn't just hang back and then pay the bill, but made a point of spending time with each kid, learning their names, and taking an active interest in them. He also insisted that the Boys and Girls Club staff chaperoning the kids pick out some gear for themselves too.

For the 25-year-old Gilgeous-Alexander, it was about more than generosity.

"I just wanted to show kids that the kind of person who I am is not out of reach. I'm an everyday person," he said after the Thunder's game on Feb. 27. "I went through the same things they were going through, for the most part.

"When I was a kid, the NBA felt like it was a world