For Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reality of life without Chet Holmgren set in throughout the final three quarters of the Thunder's 127-116 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Sunday. Unfortunately, injuries are a part of the game, especially throughout the NBA in 2024-25, but that notion doesn't make things any easier for Gilgeous-Alexander. He and Oklahoma City got a taste of not having Holmgren handling the middle as head coach Mark Daigneault's squad gave up a whopping 127 points for the first time this season.
After the loss, Gilgeous-Alexander talked about the loss of Holmgren.
“It's hard. Hopefully, he's OK,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “It's part of the game, but it sucks.”
Losing a player of Holmgren's caliber, a towering dominant forward who impacts both ends of the floor. However, for Shai, defense and rebounding are two facets of the game he and his teammates must figure out in Chet's absence.
“It changed a lot for us defensively, for sure. He does so much on that end of the floor. Cleans up so many things. Deters so many things around the rim. When he's blocking them, he averages like four blocks a game,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Yeah, it changed a lot for us obviously, a little wrinkle, but it's part of the game. You got to play through it and try to get a W done. We didn't tonight, but we'll try to do it again tomorrow.
“All of us have to figure out how to get stops and rebound. Just the few things that Chet does, but those two are most important, for sure,” Gilgeous-Alexander concluded.
Thunder's 30-point comeback falls short in 127-116 loss vs. Warriors
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder nearly pulled off an enormous second-half comeback against the Golden State Warriors. After Chet Holmgren suffered a rare hip injury in the opening frame, Stephen Curry's game-high 36 points on 13-of-23 attempts, including 7-for-13 from deep, led the Warriors to an 11-point victory. He added seven assists, five rebounds, one steal, and one block, while Jonathan Kuminga led the bench with 20 points and five rebounds.
The Thunder trailed by 30 late in the third quarter before Oklahoma City sliced its deficit to six with 4:46 left before the Warriors kept their opponent at bay down the stretch. Gilgeous-Alexander tallied 24 points, Jalen Williams added 20 and four blocks, and Lu Dort finished with 16 points, six rebounds, and one block in the loss.
The Chet Holmgren-less Thunder continue their six-game homestand by hosting the Clippers on Monday.
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