Canada Basketball's Head Coach Praises Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Canada basketball head coach Jordi Fernandez praises OKC Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's leadership ahead of FIBA World Cup play.

Oklahoma City Thunder superstar will be leading Team Canada in FIBA World Cup play. He's one of the best players in the entire tournament, competing against players such as Luka Doncic for that title.

Having had a breakout season and earning his first All-Star selection and first-team All-NBA appearance, Gilgeous-Alexander has commanded a level of respect heading into the upcoming World Cup. Playing for Canada, he has naturally assumed a leadership role, which his head coach Jordi Fernandez praised at a practice.

“It’s cool because it doesn’t feel forced,” Fernandez said of Gilgeous-Alexander’s leadership. “It comes natural. I think the guys have that relationship where they know each other, they like each other. Shai always has a smile on his face.

“And we need to have a group that enjoys being together,” Fernandez said. “They have fun working together. There has to be that level of happiness and fun and hanging out. That is important for us as an organization. We are going to do it right. We are going to compete and [the] guys will enjoy it so all those guys make it happen.”

This checks out when listening Gilgeous-Alexander's teammates talk about him and his leadership style.

On a recent podcast, his Thunder teammate Chet Holmgren said he's “just a regular person, he laughs and jokes with us the same as the last man on the roster…He is a great leader.”

Canada played their first exhibition match against Germany where Gilgeous-Alexander saw a handful of minutes but was limited ahead of real World Cup play. Over time, the team will play through Gilgeous-Alexander and he will take on the driver's seat role.

The team lost to Germany 86-81 in their first of five exhibition matches. 

It'll be interesting to see Gilgeous-Alexander ramp up minutes and take charge on a team full of NBA talent. 

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