Shai Gilgeous-Alexander received the higher of Kevin Durant and the defending champion Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder received the brand new season off with a win.
Gilgeous-Alexander was removed from his finest and described the win as “ugly” after the Thunder edged out the Houston Rockets 125-124 in second extra time.
The reigning MVP scored 35 factors, together with each game-winning free throws with 2.3 seconds left after being fouled by former Thunder celebrity Kevin Durant, who was making his Rockets debut.
All concerning the win for SGA
Gilgeous-Alexander was a bit of rusty however admitted getting the win was all that mattered.
“I must be higher,” he mentioned. “We must be higher than what we simply did. We’re going to be a greater crew in a number of months, however I totally imagine this crew will use tonight as a studying expertise.
“It was ugly tonight, however I’d fairly it’s ugly in a win than a loss for positive.”
Gilgeous-Alexander struggled within the first half for any type of fluency however coach Mark Daigneault was delighted along with his willpower to get the job performed, regardless of the way it regarded.
“He simply stays within the recreation,” Daigneault mentioned. “It wasn’t an ideal evening for him, however he simply stays in it. He understands the 48-minute nature. He understands the 82-game nature. It’s not all the time going to be excellent. And tonight wasn’t excellent for us collectively. And the fellows simply type of performed the following play, by no means misplaced our focus or resolve.”
It was a landmark evening for the Thunder who raised the Championship banner earlier than the sport for the primary time in Oklahoma Metropolis.
“It felt prefer it was going up for 10 minutes,” Gilgeous-Alexander mentioned. “It was a tremendous second. I’ll bear in mind it for the remainder of my life.”