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Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander entered Sunday's matchup with strong feelings about how his season ended in the 2024 Western Conference semifinal best-of-7 series against the Dallas Mavericks. After finishing with a game-high 36 points in the Thunder's 121-119 loss to the Mavericks, Gilgeous-Alexander said he undoubtedly carried the lessons learned into Sunday's matchup just as he does in every game this season.
It's the same approach Gilgeous-Alexander's taken since the Thunder's 4-2 loss to the Mavericks.
“Absolutely. I wouldn't forget or try to forget they beat us in six games. They beat us four times before we beat them four times, but they did so for a reason, and I use that to get better individually and as a team,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I definitely carry it into next season. I definitely learned a lesson from it. And not just against them. For every team, we play on how to be better on both ends of the ball, and you have to lose to win eventually. So, forgetting those lessons wouldn't help us at all.”
Neither would use the fact that the Thunder was thin in the center position as an excuse for Oklahoma City losing by two points to a Mavericks team missing their superstar, Luka Doncic. The Thunder came close to closing out a 14-point deficit twice in the fourth quarter. They pulled themselves within two points when Gilgeous-Alexander was intentionally fouled to prevent Oklahoma City from making a potential game-winning three.
Ultimately, Lu Dort's desperate attempt amid scrambling for a loose ball fell short. PJ Washington's 27 points and 17 rebounds and Irving's 23 points and six assists led the Mavs. Gilgeous-Alexander (36 points) went 13-0f-19 with his eight assists, Jalen Williams netted 27 points, and Dort added 18.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's ‘not at all' response to Thunder's size
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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder's 2024-25 campaign continues without Chet Holmgren, Jaylin Williams, and Isaiah Hartensten, who have yet to make their respective regular-season debuts. Still, Gilgeous-Alexander doesn't feel sorry for his team or believe in any “grace” period in light of the Thunder's thin frontcourt.
“Nah, not at all,” Gilgeous-Alexander said after the loss. “We feel like we could have won without any centers. We've won games without centers. Now, it presents a different challenge, and you have to do certain things to win a basketball game that you might not have to do when you have a center. But we're fully aware of that. We know those things going into tonight, and we didn't get enough of them done.”
The Thunder will face the Spurs on Tuesday.
