Dwiane Wade understands Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s ability to draw fouls

LAS VEGAS, NV — The Oklahoma City Thunder had one of the best starts in NBA history, winning 24 of their first 25 games for the start of the 2025-26 regular season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was a big reason for the Thunder’s strong start, but he was also the focus of many people’s frustrations during the last few years.

Gilgeous-Alexander has been among the league leaders in free throw attempts since rising to stardom and becoming one of the best offensive players in the game. His ability to draw fouls was praised by some, but criticized by most fans across the NBA.

Ex Miami Heat superstar and the NBA at the premiere Dwiane Wade disagrees with the idea that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander should be criticized for being able to draw fouls.

“Isn’t that the point?” Wade responded to ClutchPoints in an interview. “Isn’t the point of having a guy who can draw fouls, who can get to the line, who can slow the game down and who you can count on in the fourth quarter? The best players, the high IQ players, find a way to manipulate the game, right? And it’s really about understanding. His understanding of the game, smart enough to call the body movements. Like, you know what I mean and I don’t feel like that’s a bad thing?

Dwiane Wade played 16 years in the NBA, including 15 years with the Miami Heat. He is known as one of the best guards in NBA history and one of the best at drawing contact.

So it should come as no surprise that Wade feels Gilgeous-Alexander’s ability to draw contact is underrated.

“I actually think the great thing is that he learned this skill that only a few like James Harden had in Houston. He found a way to manipulate the game and use the rules to his advantage. That’s not bad if he plays by the rules and uses them to his advantage.”

“I think the more you talk about it, actually, the worse it gets. Because the players get more anxious, more anxiety guarding him, so it’s a credit to him that he’s got so much in his bag that he can do anything on the floor that keeps his defender off balance so much that he can throw them from the corners, he’s able to put them in uncomfortable situations where he can’t get them in front of him. But.”

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the NBA last season with 32.7 points per game, along with 5.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game. He was also incredibly efficient, shooting 51.9 percent from the field, 37.5 percent from three, and 89.9 percent from the free throw line.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Steve Nash hook up after the Thunder-Spurs NBA Cup semifinal.

Canadian connection 🇨🇦

(via @TomerAzarli) pic.twitter.com/Ore5bkCKUz

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 14, 2025

this season, Gilgeous-Alexander is average He averaged 32.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.4 steals in two minutes less per game, but is even more efficient than last year shooting 56 percent from the field, 43.7 percent from three and 88.4 percent from the free throw line.

Given the improvements Gilgeous-Alexander has made this season, Dwiane Wade tells ClutchPoints that he’s even more impressed with the 2024-25 regular season MVP and NBA Finals MVP.

“It’s really impressive,” Wade added of Gilgeous-Alexander. “I think just watching him come back this year, after winning the championship, winning all the awards last year, and seeing him get better at things that maybe he wasn’t as good at last year. It just shows you his dedication to his craft and you know, you have to give him so much respect because we know how hard it is to block out everything that’s going on in the world, and your dad still has a responsibility to block out your home in the world. better at his craft after his success, and I think this year we have a chance to see how special he is.

Through the first quarter of the season, the Oklahoma City Thunder appear to be slight favorites for the 2026 NBA Championship. A second straight championship for the Thunder would mark the first consecutive NBA championship since the 2017 and 2018 NBA champion Golden State Warriors.