Shai Gilgeous-Alexander stole the show for the OKC Thunder on Wednesday night against the San Antonio Spurs, but Luguentz Dort came away with the game’s biggest moment.
Oklahoma City doesn’t need wins as much as the sixth-seeded Spurs do, but it doesn’t stop the Thunder from going out each night and putting on a show for their ever-faithful fans.
Gilgeous-Alexander, after being snubbed for selection to the All-Star game, has been on a tear as of late, averaging 33.3 points per game over his last three while shooting 64 percent from the field.
And he took it to new heights on Wednesday.
Gilgeous-Alexander poured in a career-high 42 points in 38 minutes against the Spurs, hitting six of his eleven 3-point shot attempts and knocking down 90.9 percent of his free throws.
But the Spurs were persistent, battling the OKC Thunder down to the wire and tying the game at 99 with 3.9 seconds left. With little time left in the game, the obvious answer for the Spurs was to cover Gilgeous-Alexander and force someone else to shoot.
That plan to cover Gilgeous-Alexander worked well enough, but it left Dort wide open in the corner. Al Horford dumped off a pass to Dort, and Dort stared down the shot and dropped it in right at the buzzer before he fell to the floor and was dogpiled by his teammates.
The pair were phenomenal, and they needed to be as Darius Bazley finished 0-for-8, and Theo Maledon was mostly ineffective, as well.
With that being said, let’s dive into the player grades for the starting lineup.