Thousands of Hamiltonians turned out Thursday afternoon to celebrate Hamilton’s own Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, whose record-breaking NBA season is considered by some to be the greatest individual season in NBA history.
The 27-year-old Oklahoma City Thunder guard, who attended St. Thomas More Secondard School, and Sir Allan MacNab Secondary School, made basketball history by winning the regular season MVP, scoring title, NBA Championship, and Finals MVP in a single season.
He joins basketball legends Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Shaquille O’Neal as one of only four players in NBA to achieve all four accomplishments in the same season. He’s also the first Canadian to win NBA Finals MVP and lead the league in scoring.
Mayor Andrea Horwath presented Gilgeous-Alexander with the Key to the City. This is the first-time a Hamilton mayor has bestowed the honour since the creation of the amalgamated City of Hamilton in 2001.
(The former City of Hamilton a Key to the City in 1998 to wrestling entertainer Stone Cold Steve Austin.)
During today’s celebration, Mayor Horwath also announced a portion of Mohawk Road will be ceremonial renamed Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Way.
Mayor Horwath, and other speakers, praised SGA for the example he sets for young people, his focus and determination, and for representing Hamilton across the globe and onto the basketball court.
“Hamilton is different from every other city in Ontario, Hamiltonians carry a different sense of grit, determination, pride and energy than the rest of the province,” SGA told the thousands of fans at the rally.
Later in the evening, during the Hamilton Tiger-Cats home game against the BC Lions, tens of thousands of fans (and countless more watching on TSN) celebrated SGA as he receive a special tribute during the game.
Production Details
v. 1.0.0
Published: August 7, 2025
Last updated: August 7, 2025
Author: Joey Coleman
Update Record
v. 1.0.0 original version