Heading to the free-throw line, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander received some rare ‘MVP’ chants on the road. Loud boos quickly drowned them out, but he certainly earned the moment. He saved his best performance for last in this quick Round 1 series that lasted less than a week.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 38 points on 13-of-24 shooting, six assists and five rebounds. He shot 1-of-4 from 3 and went 11-of-13 on free throws. He also had two steals and a block.
The Oklahoma City Thunder survived the short-handed Memphis Grizzlies in a 117-115 Game 4 win to complete the Round 1 sweep. The West’s first seed is the first team to move on to the NBA playoffs’ Round 2.
After letting his teammates cook for the first three games, Gilgeous-Alexander took over the steering wheel. He ensured the Thunder wouldn’t fly back to OKC with a Game 5 on the docket. The Grizzlies had no answer for the 26-year-old. He abandoned the outside shot and returned to his bread and butter of drives to the basket and mid-range jumpers.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored a quick 18 points in the first quarter. He attacked Memphis’ defense. After being annoyed by Pippen Jr. in the series, he made him look like the former G League player he was. He had 31 points after three quarters and put the final touches on this sweep with some big-time buckets down the stretch.
That was an epic end to an otherwise dull series for Gilgeous-Alexander. He sleptwalked through the Grizzlies and didn’t have the superb efficiency he’s normalized over the last three seasons as a 30-point scorer. The Thunder didn’t need him to put up monster scoring numbers, but will likely need him to do so soon when the competition level is upticked.
“I’m impressed with my level to stay with it. In the past, I for sure would have turned down the aggressiveness a little bit. I made a jump as far as that this year. That’s something that I’m definitely proud of,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I try not to focus on the results and just focus on my mental development, and I think I’ve taken a step forward in that. I had a night like tonight because of it. In the past, I definitely would have shied away from the moment because of where my shooting was headed.”
This Thunder will need this version of Gilgeous-Alexander from here on out. He won’t be afforded the luxury to go at half-speed and let his teammates contribute for most of their playoff wins. As the field gets thinner, the likely MVP winner must return to being an efficient 30-plus points once he steps back on the court.
“The last three games, I feel like I was still getting to my spots, still getting to where I want to go. The ball just wasn’t going to the hoop. Tonight, the ball just went through the hoop. I don’t feel like my mindset tonight was any different,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Every day, I step on the floor to be the best version of myself, and I hadn’t been in the past. Tonight I was pretty close to it.”