Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s wife, Hailey Summers, has been by the Oklahoma City Thunder star’s side as they celebrated a couple of huge NBA accomplishments over the past few months
15:59 ET, 21 Oct 2025Updated 20:43 ET, 21 Oct 2025
Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is married to former college soccer player Hailey Summers(Image: David L. Nemec, NBAE via Getty Images)
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made NBA history as the ninth player to clinch both NBA MVP and Finals MVP in a single season during the title-winning 2024-25 season for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Gilgeous-Alexander attributed his MVP win to his wife, Hailey Summers, who — months before the 6-foot-6 shooting guard claimed his first championship ring — broke the news that Gilgeous-Alexander had made his dream come true and would appear on the cover of the NBA 2K26 video game.
The NBA Finals-bound Thunder did not play on Christmas Day last season, meaning he spent the holiday with his loved ones. That’s when Summers decided to let his husband know he would become the iconic game’s cover athlete, joining Angel Reese among the 2026 roster.
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Netflix captured the moment, with the streaming giant’s crew following Gilgeous-Alexander around during the 2024-25 season for the ‘Starting 5’ series. The game with SGA on the cover was inside one of the presents, and Summers made sure he would open his gift last.
“This is not real. You’re f—— lying,” a shocked Gilgeous-Alexander said upon seeing himself on the cover. “This is not real.”
He added, “Are you deada—? Yo, are you deada—!?” SGA then told Netflix just how much it meant to be on the NBA 2K cover.
“Me and my brother grew up playing 2K almost every day when we’d come home from school,” he said. “It seems unfathomable and unreachable when you’re a kid. It’s like, I am now on a cover of 2K.”
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Summers, who shares Canadian roots with Gilgeous-Alexander, first appeared on the would-be NBA star’s social media in 2017. While he pursued basketball at Kentucky, she headed to the University of Albany — where she captained the soccer team for two years — before reconnecting post-college.
In a candid 2024 interview with Andscape, the Thunder superstar acknowledged his partner’s role in keeping him grounded. “She is brutally honest,” he confessed.
“She played basketball. She sees things. If my mindset is off, she makes sure I know. Those are the things that I can control. And she can see if I wear it on my sleeve.
“She can see if I’m not aggressive and say, ‘What is the point of being out there if you’re not being aggressive?’ It’s a little hard, but I’m like, —- you’re right.'”
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The duo tied the knot in February 2024 and welcomed their first child, Ares Alexander, on April 25 of the same year. Gilgeous-Alexander gave a shoutout to both during his MVP acceptance speech.
“Hailey Summers, thank you for everything you are – for me, for our son, Ares,” he said. “You were the first person to show me what love really meant … what sacrifice really meant,” he said.
“And I can’t wait to spend the rest of this journey called life with you.”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander posted a league-leading 32.7 points per game while shooting 51.9 percent from the field, adding 6.4 assists and 5.0 rebounds during the 2024-25 season.
He will collect his championship ring on Tuesday, when Oklahoma City hosts ex-Thunder superstar Kevin Durant and his Houston Rockets for an Opening Night matchup that tips off the new campaign.