Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder Hold off Pistons

The Thunder had come up clutch again to hold off a late charge by the Pistons.

Move over Houston; there is a new Clutch City. It's here in the heart of America where the Thunder has perfected the art of winning nailbiters. Wednesday, the Thunder escaped Detroit with a 114-107 win over the Pistons.    

SMOOTH & 𝒮𝐼𝐿𝒦𝒴. @shaiglalex w/21 PTS midway through 3rd. pic.twitter.com/Mw3THGoo8f

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 5, 2020

After taking a 94-82 lead at the end of the third quarter, Oklahoma City found themselves down by one with 1:53 to go after an 8 foot Brandon Knight floater.  

From there, the Thunder would go on an 8-0 run highlighted by a Danilo Gallinari 26-foot jumper. Gallinari was playing for the first time all season on the second night of a back to back. 

Billy Donovan says there were no plans to change anything when it came to resting players. But, considering the trade deadline has come and gone, and Oklahoma City is just a game and a half back of the Jazz for the fifth seed in the western conference, it should be all hands on deck. 

"Down the stretch we have an advantage." @CP3 after the win.#ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/0WCwpDu50N

— Bally Sports Oklahoma (@BallySportsOK) March 5, 2020

Before Tuesday night's game with the Clippers, Donovan was asked what he gained by getting Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Gallinari in the trade for Paul George. 

Donovan says, "With Shai, you get a guy with unbelievable potential that's certainly made a huge jump from his rookie year to his second year."..." And a guy that's got a great, great future ahead of him."

With Gilgeous-Alexander, there are times when you feel the future is now. Witness his third-quarter takeover. In 9:58, Gilgeous-Alexander went six of seven from the floor scoring 13 points. He came up big in the fourth quarter as well, extending Oklahoma City's lead to 106-103 with a 14-foot jumper.  

In that same pregame press conference on Tuesday, Donovan also said he got team guys that were committed to winning. You can argue that the Thunder went into cruise control during the first part of the fourth quarter, but when they needed it, Chris Paul, Gallinari, Dennis Schroder, and Gilgeous-Alexander all stepped up.  

🇩🇪🇳🇿🔥 pic.twitter.com/83GnT5Fajy

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 5, 2020

What's Next:

The Thunder face the Knicks on Friday tipoff is at 6:30 pm on Fox Sports Oklahoma. 

Worth Noting:

The Thunder dominated in the paint outscoring Detroit 58-40. For as good as Gilgeous-Alexander was Dennis Schroder deserves some love. Schroder came off the bench to play 30 minutes, scoring 23 and going 7/14 from the floor.   

What Do You Think?

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