Gilgeous-Alexander Paves Way for Win Over Timberwolves
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On Saturday night, the Oklahoma City Thunder toppled the Minnesota Timberwolves in a heated affair where the officiating crew handed out six technical fouls, ejected Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert, and sent players to the free-throw line a total of 65 times.
Despite the turbulence, the Thunder were able to showcase a high-functioning offense that led to a 135-128 victory. Their scoring performance came on the back of some hot shooting as the team converted 52.1% from the field, 42.3% from beyond the arc, and 80% from the line.
The 135 points produced in regulation by the Thunder marks the team’s second-highest scoring total of the season and has only been accomplished a total of 20 times out of 636 games throughout the league.
Here are the top performers from Saturday night’s win.
Kenrich Williams
Not to be overshadowed by his incident with Gobert that led to the Frenchman’s ejection, Williams was an essential part of some of Mark Daigneault’s lineups that seemed to thrive against Minnesota’s defense. In fact, Williams recorded the second-highest box-plus minus of the night for his team.
As the fourth man off the bench, the Dallas-area native showed up and showed out in his 21 minutes, playing excellent defense, taking and hitting big shots, and acting as a small ball center at times. His seven points in the fourth quarter were also key to the Thunder re-taking the Timberwolves down the stretch.
Not only was Williams contributing in multiple ways, but he was also doing so efficiently and without error. The veteran forward was able to provide 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including 2-of-3 from deep, while finding three rebounds, dishing out two assists, and turning the ball over zero times.
Josh Giddey
The Australian playmaker appeared to take a step forward last night against the mostly Gobert-less Timberwolves. Giddey was able to take advantage of a porous defense all night long and consistently generated looks for his teammates while finding multiple opportunities to attack downhill. On the defensive end, he poked and prodded at drives, blocking shots and ripping balls away.
The 6-foot-8 ball-handler even got it going from downtown, knocking down 3-of-7 of his 3-point attempts and doing so with a confidence not seen before. All of his attempts came in the second half as well, perhaps highlighting a newfound willingness to launch the ball.
Giddey finished the night with 21 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, two blocks, and two steals.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Gilgeous-Alexander made his job look easy, carving the Timberwolves up by way of silky smooth drives, mid-range jumpers, and pick-and-roll passing. That resulted in the Canadian star once again leading the Thunder in scoring and taking 12 trips to the free-throw line.
Not only was he the Thunder’s top scorer, but he was also the game’s top scorer. Gilgeous-Alexander earned himself yet another 30-point performance, going for 33 points on an efficient 10-of-17 shooting from the field and nailing 100% of his free throws.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s defense showed up for his team as well as he used his nearly seven-foot wingspan to disrupt passing lanes and provide help to his teammates at times. His penchant for just knowing where to be allowed him to corral three steals and end up with one block on the night, capping another great performance.
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