Los Angeles Clippers: 5 reasons Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was a good pick

1. Perimeter defense

The point guard position is arguably the most stacked in the league.

Every night there seems to be an All-Star level ball-handler facing off against one’s favorite team, and with that comes the task of stopping them. One night it’s Stephen Curry, the next Russell Westbrook comes to town, then it’s off to guard Damian Lillard.

If an NBA team — specifically in the Western Conference — doesn’t have the ability to at least slow these NBA elites down, it becomes nearly impossible to beat them.

This is where Gilgeous-Alexander comes in, as his strength lies in defensive chops on opposing guards.

This isn’t to say he’ll immediately become a Westbrook-stopper, but the guy has the physique and tenacity to eventually become one of the better perimeter defenders in the league, especially while playing under the tutelage of Patrick Beverley.

Playing in the West against so many top-level guards should do wonders for SGA’s development, forcing him to grow at a faster rate once he almost surely gets burned by his opponents.

It may not look that way at first, but the growing pains Gilgeous-Alexander goes through early on will ultimately translate into success as early as his sophomore campaign.

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Once he understands what it takes to defend at a high level in the NBA he’ll be able to lean on his already solid defensive abilities to improve the Clippers on that end of the floor and prove capable of creating difficulties for the best the NBA has to offer.