Powered by MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Oklahoma City Thunder have roared back in the NBA Finals. After losing Game 1 to the Indiana Pacers on Tyrese Haliburton’s buzzer-beater, the Thunder responded with a dominant 123-107 win in Game 2, tying the series at 1-1. The win secure a Game 5 for Monday, June 16, at home, while Games 3 and 4 will be played in Indiana on Wednesday and Friday.
The Thunder have been the league’s top team all season. They kicked things off with seven consecutive double-digit wins-a first in NBA history-and closed with 68 victories, the sixth-best record ever and a franchise peak. They crushed opponents by an average of 12.9 points per game, surpassing a 50-year-old Lakers record. At the helm is 26-year-old Canadian star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, whose MVP season has fueled OKC’s Playoff run.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Remarkable Season
SGA continue his incredible year last night, hitting a milestone in Game 2 when he scored his 3,000th point of the season, including regular season and playoff games. He’s now the 12th player ever to reach that mark, joining icons like Michael Jordan (who did it 10 times) and Wilt Chamberlain (who did it five times).
He also joins former Thunder standouts Kevin Durant and James Harden, who both reached the milestone during their MVP years. Durant achieved his milestone with OKC before losing to Miami in the Finals, while Harden achieved his in Houston Reaching 3,000 points seems to signal an MVP award, and SGA is no exception. He has been the heartbeat of this Thunder team, and he shines brightest on the Finals stage.
Yes, maybe he doesn’t have Nikola Jokic all-around stats, Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s ability to drive to the basket, Anthony Edwards‘s charm, or the athleticism to dunk the ball, but no one has stopped SGA from scoring since last season. His work ethic is elite, and his IQ is off the charts. Don’t listen to the “free-throw merchant” chants because every superstar, except maybe Stephen Curry, gets great calls from the ref and not this season but in NBA history.
Thunder’s Road to Glory and Finals Showdown
OKC earned their spot in the Finals by beating Minnesota in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. They became only the fourth team-after the 2016 Warriors and the ’93 and ’98 Bulls-to notch 80 combined wins before the Finals. Despite slipping in Game 1, they’ve dominated this series, with SGA leading the charge.
He scored 38 points in Game 1 and 34 in Game 2, for a total of 72 points in his Finals debut-edging out Allen Iverson’s 71 points record in 2001. Iverson was also an MVP that year, winning Game 1 but losing the series to the Lakers. SGA’s playoff stats-30.8 points, 6.8 assists, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.8 steals over 18 games-put him in elite company alongside Jordan (four times) and James (twice) for streaks of 16+ games.
The Pacers have the next two games at home, and winning both could turn the series around. However, stopping this Thunder team won’t be easy, given their historic season and SGA’s dominance. If OKC claims the title, they’ll be included in the conversation about the NBA’s greatest teams-the facts don’t care about feelings.
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