Shai Gilgeous-Alexander looked out over the media scrum, considering the question for a moment.
What surprised him most in the first game of the season?
“How tired I was,” Gilgeous-Alexander said before flashing a smile. “I realized how much I’m not in shape.”
He had just finished playing almost 37 minutes at Utah, well above his average last season of 26.5 minutes per game. The second-year guard's time on the court has remained just as high through the Thunder’s first 15 games of the season. Logging 35 minutes per game, Gilgeous-Alexander's average playing time is among the top 15 in the NBA this year, tied with Utah’s Donovan Mitchell.