The Oklahoma City Thunder played one of the best games of the NBA season on Monday night in Bricktown as the OKC Thunder beat the Portland Trail Blazers on a buzzer-beating baseline jumper from star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on a night in which Portland saw Damian Lillard become the all-time leading scorer in Trail Blazer’s history.
After the game, as we celebrate a historic milestone that will likely never be touched again, given the nature of current-day player movement in the association, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gave an answer in his post-game press conference that should be music to Thunder fan’s ears.
Oklahoma City Thunder star point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander plays the game to “Break records and be the best to ever play” which should be music to the ears of the OKC Thunder fanbase
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was asked about Damian Lillard becoming the Portland Trail Blazers’ all-time leading scorer, and he gave a great answer saying “I play the game to break records” and he “absolutely” wants to do what Lillard did, “it is what every kid dreams of” while adding the Kentucky product wants to be the best.
This should be music to Oklahoma City Thunder fan’s ears as we are in the midst of year four in Oklahoma City, of his five-year career that started in L.A. with the Clippers. If he truly values breaking these records and becoming the franchises leading scorer, he has to stick around Bricktown for a long time.
The National Media has continued to try to push Shai Gilgeous-Alexander out the door, citing losing games these past two seasons, and crazed Raptors fans preaching how he desperately wants to be in Canada, but all of that has to be curb of these milestones truly matter to the star point guard.
The All-Time leading scorer in Oklahoma City Thunder history is Russell Westbrook with 18,859 points in Kevin Durants nine seasons with the organization despite being a prolific scorer he was only able to nab third place on the all-time leader board.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has scored 4,409 points as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder, with four more years under contract following this season, the superstar guard would need to re-up with the OKC Thunder to have a shot to become a franchises all-time leading scorer.
Having already started from ground zero twice in his career, once as a rookie with the Clippers, and then again in year two with OKC, one more movement would nix any shot he has of being the club’s all-time leading scorer, so if that is truly important to the 24-year-old, this is yet another quote that should encourage Thunder fans in the face of the media trying to push him out.