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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's Historic 20 Point Streak Ends At 141 Games
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- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's Historic 20 Point Streak Ends At 141 Games
(Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images)
Pour one out for one of the most outstanding runs of consistent greatness in basketball history.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's NBA record of consecutive games scoring 20 or more points ended at 141 games on Thursday night.
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The Oklahoma City Thunder won their home opener over the Denver Nuggets by a final score of 96-84. While OKC fans are ecstatic to start the season off 2-0 with back to back 12 point wins over their two biggest rivals, the victory was slightly bittersweet as the Thunder superstar finished with 17 points. But the way his all-time streak concluded was classic Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Classy. And on his own terms.
"I just have to note. He asked out of the game at the end of the game," Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault told reporters after the game. "And he's got a historic streak going. Which is a remarkable streak, obviously. I just think the class that it shows. And the perspective that it shows for him to say, 'Hey, I'm out now. The game is calling for me to be subbed out of the game.' That was his substitution. Of all the things that I admire about him, that's towards the top of the list in terms of moments that I appreciate about him. It shows tremendous class as a competitor."
So what if the back to back MVP hadn't checked himself out? Did Daigneault plan on keeping him in the game to keep the streak going?
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"It's a historic record. So it's a little bit of a dilemma if you're in my position," Daigneault said. "But he put me in a great position there. Like I said, I would've left him. I was going to leave him. But for all the reasons I said, it's just another reason on the list of why I admire him. His perspective in that situation. And like I said, his competitive class."
Anyone who has followed Gilgeous-Alexander throughout his career isn't surprised by the class he showed in the moment. Just as impressive as his talent is on the court, so too is his character.
"I was gonna go out there. And I saw that they had subbed. So then I was like, we should sub too," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "I feel like you always treat the game with respect. And God willing, I have many more games to start another streak. So it's not the end of the world."
One of Gilgeous-Alexander's All Star teammates says he might have handled things a bit differently.
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"I asked him, I said, 'Do you want to shoot some 3s here?' And he said, 'Nah.' And then he went up to Mark and subbed himself out," Chet Holmgren said before cracking a joke. "I told him he's a better man than me. I would've been shooting some pull up 3s. It was a selfless moment. He's a selfless guy."
