Visibly annoyed at Mario Hezonja's handsy defense, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's body language had enough. He pulled his dribble back to the perimeter. Dancing with the ball in a crossover, he went the disrespectful route of going with the pull-up outside jumper he drilled in his. The moxie move was certainly different from his somber Saturday mood.
The Oklahoma City Thunder collected a much-needed 117-112 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. It's a quick morale boost as the former continues to navigate life in the Post-D.C.C. (Dub, Chet, Caso) era.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 43 points on 14-of-35 shooting, eight assists and three rebounds. He shot 4-of-8 from 3 and went 11-of-12 on free throws. He also had two steals and one block.
This is what
the Thunder need. At least, for the interim. As ruthless as OKC's recent circumstances are, you can't reasonably pack your bags and call it a year with 75-plus games to go. Gilgeous-Alexander finally understands the mission. He has to leave it all on the floor. Every single night. It's not a sustainable formula for success, but a quick fix that they need for now.
The super-efficient 30-point scorer went against his nature. Usually, he plays within the flow of the offense. That's no longer a luxury. Almost all of OKC's possessions with him on the floor have to end with him taking a shot attempt. That's what happened throughout the night. He was busy at all four levels — inside the paint, at the mid-range, from the outside and at the free-throw line. This was a return to the formula of constantly attacking the paint.
Nobody on the Cavaliers could slow him down. Even with the Hulk-ified version of Hezonja battering into him. Gilgeous-Alexander slithered his way to the rim. He went up for contested jumpers even with several defenders on his face. He even relied on his outside jumper. With 30 points through three quarters, his fourth frame was going to decide this one.
What did Gilgeous-Alexander do? Went all out. He took 13 shot attempts in the fourth quarter alone. 13! Truly, the definition of emptying the clip. Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams encouraged him from a distance. Both All-NBA talents want him to bring out his inner 2005-06 Kobe Bryant — who averaged a legendary 35.4 points on 27 shot attempts per night.
"I just think that, the way the past week has gone, I needed to have better personal energy," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "It obviously was very emotional and a lot really fast, but I had to get my mind to what I could control, where we are as a team and where my feet were. And I think my head was there. My head wasn’t where it should’ve been. I just tried to stay in the moment tonight, more than anything, and I guess it paid off a little bit. We were able to get a W."
Finally, Gilgeous-Alexander closed this out. He hit a big-time 3-pointer as he tasted blood in the water with Merrill stuck on him on an island. Poetically enough, on the same day that the Thunder announced his upcoming jersey retirement, perhaps OKC's best playbook to follow is what it went through in Russell Westbrook's 2016-17 MVP campaign.
The Thunder are going to rely on Gilgeous-Alexander from here on out. On Mark Daigneault, too. That NBA superstar and head coach duo has been one of the most decorated in this current era. Just look at their trophy case. If OKC is going to survive this brutal stretch over the next two months until help arrives, then those two basketball geniuses have to work their magic.
"It’s not always pretty and cute. Sometimes I’m mad at him and sometimes he tells me to shut up. Sometimes he’s right. Sometimes I’m right, well, I like to think," Gilgeous-Alexander said about Daigneault. "But I think because of our relationship off the court, we both know where we’re coming from. That’s what holds everything together. We both know what our intentions are — which is to win the basketball game. That’s our main goal. We share that common goal. We try to do so every night."
Obviously, this is not anybody's ideal world in OKC. Entering the year, the Thunder were talked about as being the top title contender. Now, they're left scrambling over what exactly an appropriate goal is and who'll be there if/when they make the 2027 NBA playoffs. Until this team's new evolution occurs, Gilgeous-Alexander will continue to put them on their shoulders and help carry them in the meantime.
"Just trying to figure out what winning will look like with this team and group. As myself and the rest of the group has grown accustomed to what winning will look like with the whole group that we had," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Just trying to figure that out. That's all that matters. Trying to win games and figure out what it looks like. In the NBA, it's a team full of NBA players."
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander brought 'better personal energy' in OKC's win over Cavaliers
