Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander reveals what caused subpar Game 1 effort

The Oklahoma City Thunder evened up the Western Conference Finals on Wednesday night, and newly crowned MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the biggest reason why.

Following a relatively quiet showing in the series opener, Gilgeous-Alexander bounced back in a massive way during Game 2. The superstar guard paced Oklahoma City to a crucial 122-113 victory over the San Antonio Spurs at the Paycom Center, torching the short-handed visitors for a game-high 30 points on 12-of-24 shooting from the floor. He also tallied nine assists, four rebounds, and two blocks in 38 minutes to prevent the Thunder from falling into a dangerous 0-2 hole.

The spectacular bounce-back performance stood in stark contrast to his uncharacteristic struggles in Game 1. During Monday night’s double-overtime loss, Gilgeous-Alexander uncharacteristically shot a dismal 7-of-23 from the field and failed to score in either extra period.

When asked after Game 2 what caused that opening-night slump, the back-to-back MVP didn’t point fingers at San Antonio’s defense or search for standard excuses. Instead, he blamed his own internal clock.

“I just have sucked when I get too long of a break,” Gilgeous-Alexander admitted with a laugh regarding his Game 1 performance. “I guess I gotta do a better job with my breaks.”

"I just have sucked when I get too long of a break. I guess I gotta do a better job with my breaks"

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander speaks on his struggles in Game 1 pic.twitter.com/470FibfR7c

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The extra downtime clearly rusted the star’s rhythm early on, but he shook it off completely on Wednesday. His surgical scoring output countered a monster interior performance from San Antonio center Victor Wembanyama, who anchored the Spurs with 21 points, 17 rebounds, and four blocks. San Antonio rookie Stephon Castle also chipped in 25 points, but Oklahoma City’s suffocating backcourt pressure forced the freshman into nine costly turnovers, turning the tide for the defending champions.

With Gilgeous-Alexander officially back in MVP form, this heavyweight postseason battle is only getting started. The series now shifts to the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio for Game 3 on Friday night.

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