Shai Gilgeous-Alexander selected as cover athlete for NBA 2K26

shai-nba-champ — Jun 22, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) after winning game seven of the 2025 NBA Finals against the Indiana Pacers at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Another former Kentucky Wildcat will grace the front of the world’s most popular basketball video game.

As first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been selected as the cover athlete for NBA 2K26, which is expected to release this September. Pre-ordering for this year’s edition of the game begins on Wednesday.

This is just the cherry on top of what was a historically great 2024-25 campaign from Gilgeous-Alexander. The 26-year-old became the first Kentucky alum to win the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award, which he earned on his way to securing OKC’s first championship. SGA led the entire league in scoring, was named Western Conference and Finals MVP, inked a massive contract extension that pays him more per season than anyone in NBA history, and even released his first signature shoe.

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The generational run continues ⚡️

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is your #NBA2K26 Standard Edition Cover Athlete!

Pre-order NBA 2K26 starting tomorrow! pic.twitter.com/1pQTtWOUh2
— NBA 2K (@NBA2K) July 8, 2025

Gilgeous-Alexander becomes the third former Wildcat named the cover athlete for an NBA 2K game, which has been released annually since 1999. Devin Booker (NBA 2K23) and Anthony Davis (NBA 2K20 and NBA 2K16) have also done it over the years. But not even Booker nor Davis has been able to succeed at the level SGA did in 2024-25.

In what was his seventh NBA season (and third as an All-NBA player), Gilgeous-Alexander posted per-game averages of 32.7 points, 6.4 assists, five rebounds, 1.7 steals, and one block in 34.2 minutes. He started all 76 games played, shooting 51.9 percent from the field, 37.5 percent from deep, and 89.8 percent from the free throw line. After finishing top five in MVP voting the previous two seasons, SGA beat out three-time MVP winner Nikola Jokic for the league’s top individual award.

And now, he’s the face of NBA 2K26 — not a bad year for Quade Green‘s former backup.

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