The Oklahoma City Thunder opened the playoffs with two dominant wins.
As the series shifts to Memphis, they’ll need Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to elevate his game and help maintain their momentum.
Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, and Isaiah Hartenstein have been bright spots for the team so far. SGA’s play has been uncharacteristic so far. He will need to improve his play if the team wants to see success past the first round.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Game One Struggles
In game one of the playoffs, OKC had one of the most dominant wins in NBA history, blowing Memphis out of the water, 131-80. The 51-point win is the largest game-one victory in NBA history.
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The team looked near perfect in this game. SGA, on the other hand, struggled immensely. The MVP frontrunner shot just 13 shots and only saw four go down. This included seven three-point attempts, where he made just one.
These numbers are very unlike Shai. The 2024-25 scoring champion typically shoots 51.9% from the field. In this game, he shot a disappointing 30.7%. He also exceeded his average three-point attempts per game (5.7) by 1.3.
Gilgeous-Alexander isn’t known for being a three-point shooter. He is known for his ability to get to the paint and find the defense slipping in the midrange. Seeing him shoot more than half of his total FGs from three is a bit concerning.
Despite the rest of the team’s success, SGA scored just 15 points in Game 1.
Struggles Continued into Game 2
Returning to the court Tuesday night, the Thunder battled the Grizzlies for the second time and secured a dominant 118-99 win. While his point total was up, so were his field goal attempts.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander poured in a game-high 27 points, but he did so on 29 shots— a red flag for efficiency. Shooting just 10-of-29 from the field, this outing adds to a growing concern over his playoff form.
Although SGA’s willingness to shoot more shows steady confidence, his efficiency from deep remained an issue. He attempted ten threes but made only three, despite many of them being clean, makeable looks.
Considering the criticism he’s already drawn this season, SGA needs to raise his level of play moving forward. The playoffs leave little room for off nights, especially for star players.
What to Fix, What to Keep
SGA is a player who should take 20-plus shots a game. You don’t become the scoring champion without shooting the ball often. This is something he needs to keep up as the playoffs continue.
Although his shooting has faltered at times, Gilgeous-Alexander hasn’t let that shake his confidence all season. When the team’s leader stays mentally strong, the rest of the squad tends to follow.
The Thunder have played impressive basketball through the first round of the playoffs. However, if they hope to make a deep run this season, Gilgeous-Alexander must elevate his game and relieve some of the pressure off his teammates.
The Thunder are likely to sweep, or gentleman-sweep the Grizzlies. Shai can get away with off nights throughout the course of this series. The winner of Nuggets vs. Clippers offers a much harder opponent for OKC in the second round.
As the Thunder prepare for the next phase of their title push, the margin for error will only shrink. They need to tighten their execution and eliminate the lapses that could cost them in later rounds.
It all starts with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander regaining his rhythm and leading the team to wins.
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