Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander successfully made a crazy circus shot in the closing minutes of the third quarter of their game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night. Gilgeous-Alexander attacked the lane and the ball apparently slipped out of his hands but it somehow still managed to find the bottom of the net.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s layup package is better than your favorite player’s pic.twitter.com/LJbwlDF6Qi
— 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒆 🌩 (@Three_Cone) January 26, 2021
After the game, the 22-year-old former Kentucky Wildcat finally saw the clip of the play and he himself was stunned at how the ball still went in the basket, per Brandon Rahbar of The Daily Thunder. Nonetheless, he claimed that he will still take the two points no matter how he scored them.
Shai on his crazy circus layup: "I honestly don't know what happened. The guys showed me the clip and I still don't know what happened. But I'll take the two points."
— Brandon Rahbar (@BrandonRahbar) January 26, 2021
The basket definitely made a huge impact on the outcome of the game. The Thunder stepped on the gas pedal in the second half in an effort to match up against the high-scoring offensive production of the Blazers.
Four players from Portland scored more than 20 points, bannered by Damian Lillard who notched 26 points, six rebounds, and 10 assists, along with Anfernee Simons who added 26 points of his own. Carmelo Anthony and Gary Trent Jr. contributed 22 points apiece as they continue to miss the services of CJ McCollum who is out with a foot injury.
The young Thunder squad still managed to stand their ground against the Blazers led by Gilgeous-Alexander who starred with 24 points, nine rebounds, and six assists. Veteran Mike Muscala also had a huge performance headlined by his 23 points while sophomore Darius Bazley came out with 19 points and seven rebounds of his own.
Oklahoma City managed to execute better in crunch time as they ran away with a 125-122 victory to snap their three-game losing skid. The Thunder now improved to a 7-9 record for the 11th spot in the Western Conference while the Blazers slid to a 9-7 tally.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and his team will hope to sustain their momentum as they face another tough assignment when they visit the Phoenix Suns on Jan. 27.
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