Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander struggled in Recreation 1 at dwelling towards the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.
The MVP candidate scored 15 factors however shot 4-of-13 from the sphere and dedicated two turnovers in 23 minutes. Nonetheless, that did not have an effect on the sport’s end result.
The Thunder demolished the Grizzlies 131-80. Citing OptaAnalyst, The Athletic shared that Oklahoma Metropolis’s victory was the fifth largest in NBA playoff historical past.
The win might show that the Thunder have one thing that many championship-winning groups have: depth.
Towards Memphis, the Thunder had five players in addition to Gilgeous-Alexander end with double-digit factors, together with guard Aaron Wiggins, who scored a game-high 21 factors. Oklahoma Metropolis additionally shot 50.5 % from the sphere.
Memphis, in the meantime, did not look as deep as Oklahoma Metropolis. Grizzlies star guard Ja Morant scored 17 factors however shot 6-of-17 from the sphere. With Morant sputtering, Memphis’s offense stalled, and it shot 34.4 % from the sphere.
Morant insisted the Grizzlies will rebound in Recreation 2 in Oklahoma Metropolis at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
“We’ll by no means play that unhealthy once more,” he mentioned in a postgame information convention, per Bleacher Report.
Nonetheless, it would not be a shock if the Grizzlies’ sequence towards the Thunder is a brief one. Together with a greater roster, Oklahoma Metropolis doubtless has a training edge.
On Sunday, Memphis was taking part in its first playoff recreation below interim head coach Tuomas Iisalo. He coached simply 9 regular-season video games earlier than the play-in event.
Oklahoma Metropolis had a 68-14 regular-season document, one of the best within the NBA. Whereas it is just one recreation, the Thunder appeared each little bit of a championship favourite in Sunday’s blowout towards Memphis.
