Well-deserved for the talented cager.
(Reuters) - Oklahoma City Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won the Northern Star Award as Canada's top athlete of 2023 on Monday after a year in which he led the national team to a bronze medal upset win over the United States in the FIBA World Cup in Manila.
The 25-year-old Gilgeous-Alexander, whose performance in the basketball conclave also helped Canada secure a place in the 2024 Paris Olympics, is only the second basketball player to win the award after Hall of Famer Steve Nash in 2005.
Gilgeous-Alexander beat Nick Taylor, who this year became the first Canadian in 69 years to win his national open, swimmer Summer McIntosh, hammer thrower Camryn Rogers, and Connor McDavid of the NHL's Edmonton Oilers for the award.
Last NBA season, SGA averaged 31.4 points per game along with 4.8 rebounds and 5.5 assists with the Thunder and was named an All-Star for the first time in his professional career.
In 20 games this season, Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging a team-high 30.5 points per game, sixth best in the NBA.
Previously known as the Lou Marsh Trophy, the Northern Star Award is handed out annually by the Toronto Star newspaper and is voted on by a panel of Canadian sports journalists.
Past winners include Bayern Munich's Alphonso Davies (2020), former US Open tennis champion Bianca Andreescu (2019), and decorated Olympic swimmer Penny Oleksiak (2016).