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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander caps OKC Thunder rally vs Knicks to clinch NBA Playoff berth
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- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander caps OKC Thunder rally vs Knicks to clinch NBA Playoff berth
NEW YORK — Mark Daigneault vividly recites some of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 's game winning-shots from time to time. The opponent, the circumstances, the play, the detail of the shot down to the spot on the floor and which way the Thunder star might've leaned.
Perhaps he shouldn't remember so well. In the past few seasons, Gilgeous-Alexander has delivered plenty. But Daigneault finds himself constantly drawing back to them, elicited by the deja vu of the familiar scenarios that once let Daigneault know what he was dealing with.
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Instances that, by now, leave him and his star stale-faced. Unmoved. Cold.
All of Madison Square Garden could've guessed where the Thunder's final possession of its 113-112 win Sunday would come to a halt. That didn't prevent Gilgeous-Alexander's decision, a game-winning baseline J with 1.8 seconds to play. Or its outcome, which clinched the Thunder's 12th playoff berth in 16 seasons in OKC.
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That decision was nearly meant to be made without him. Under the romantically-tuned lights of the Garden, Jalen Brunson reigns king. New York's beloved son, the one who attempted free throws to MVP chants, who torched the Thunder throughout the second half and who seemingly finished OKC off several times Sunday.
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With 3:32 to play, Brunson (30 points, seven assists) found his way to the top of the key after Josh Hart corralled Brunson's missed free throw. Brunson drilled his fourth 3, spreading his arms apart as if to remind New York who he was before kissing each of the hands that took part in the game-tying shot.
Brunson twitched and jerked to his spots, nearly driving Lu Dort to insanity. At the very least, Brunson came close to driving him to disqualification. While Dort held Brunson to 3-for-8 shooting through a half, it wasn't without cost. At halftime, with some distance between himself and the remainder of his teammates, Dort made his trip to the locker room while debating with the officiating crew.
The Thunder opened the second half with Cason Wallace in place of Dort, then with four fouls. It unknowingly opened up Pandora's box.
Brunson went for 10 points on 4-for-7 shooting in the third quarter alone, helping confuse OKC in what ended up being a rare blip of efficiency in an egregious shooting game.
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The Knicks shot 66.7% from the field and 6 for 12 from deep then (41.3% and 30.2% on the night), forcing the Thunder to go zone and try lineups and essentially melt.
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Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) hits the game winning basket with 1.8 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of a 113-112 win against the Knicks on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.
Jalen Williams had flipped the Garden into a ballroom floor just to keep OKC afloat. Singling out defenders to dance, insisting he go to his spots and his spots only. His perpetual mid-range pullups would've made the most viewed game of H.O.R.S.E. had they not been the shots he knows and loves. He had 33 points on 18 shots before he ever reached "E."
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After a notable month, Josh Giddey 's continued stellar play was one of its only lifelines Sunday. He finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists. In 31 minutes, he was a plus-11. With his performance, Giddey became the first player in NBA history to record three triple-doubles in each of their first three appearances at Madison Square Garden.
Gilgeous-Alexander, walking gingerly and masking a limp in his return from a two-game hiatus, shouldn't have had a say.
He admitted as much himself.
"I was almost like, 'I shouldn't go back in in the fourth quarter,' (with) how good they were," Gilgeous-Alexander said.
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Wherever Chip Engelland was, his pockets fattened with each Giddey shot. Williams only tied his tap shoes tighter. Aaron Wiggins and Kenrich Williams helped spark a 21-8 run for a lead, a stretch of toughness and gutsy 3s.
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Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) returned to the lineup Sunday night in a 113-112 win against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
Maybe they didn't need Gilgeous-Alexander after all of it. After the missed rebounds, the trading of missed free throws like New York stocks (23 between both teams), the Thunder gave the Knicks chances to win, very few of which its star seemed suited to prevent.
Brunson made OKC pay for all the chances it gave him. Possession after possession to get it right. He reached past Chet Holmgren 's outstretched arm for a lay-in that should've ended the night with 4.1 seconds left. He seemingly gave everyone the conclusion Sunday's hectic close deserved.
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But Daigneault had seen this ending. Most of Gilgeous-Alexander's teammates had. They saw the shot, too, scripted so many times that it naturally unfolded Sunday.
"Whether he has two points or 50 points, (Gilgeous-Alexander's) getting the ball," Giddey said.
After the game, Daigneault retold the story of Gilgeous-Alexander's game-winning shot versus Charlotte some seasons back. About how OKC had crumbled and about how his star didn't flinch.
Soon, he'll retell the events of Sunday down to Tracy Morgan's smile and Gilgeous-Alexander's rightful spot on the baseline.
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Thunder tip-ins
After being issued a flop in the Thunder's Wednesday win over Phoenix , Dort saw the call be rescinded early Sunday. It's the second flop he's seen rescinded this season. Before the league's decision, Suns coach Frank Vogel called him out by name.
Daigneault wouldn't address Vogel's comments directly, but his words felt especially relevant on a night when Dort happened to deal with foul trouble early.
"What I will say is, I've coached Lu for five years, and he's as high integrity of a players I've coached," Daigneault said. "Plain and simple. Plays the game hard, plays it the right way, not a dirty player. He is an irritant, but he's an irritant within the rules of the game.
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"I don't think it's overly relevant that it was put out there, but what would make it relevant is if the way the game is called changes because it's out there. Lu's drawn 135 illegal screens in the last two years. It's 40 better than the next guy. … If that trend were to change, if it no longer was being called, then I would sit there and say, 'OK, are we allowed to negotiate for calls through the media?' That would be a slippery slope."
The Thunder's bench, particularly the aforementioned group that made the fourth quarter run, arguably made the difference in Sunday's game. It outscored New York's bench 36-18. Brunson was a plus-17 in his minutes, but the Knicks were outscored by 18 when he went to the bench.
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Thunder vs. 76ers
TIPOFF:6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia (TNT)
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander beat Knicks to cap playoff berth
