Not getting to play on Christmas has the Oklahoma City Thunder feeling like they have something to prove when they head to Indianapolis for a meeting with the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night.
A 57-25 finish to the 2023-24 campaign that resulted in the No. 1 seed in the West wasn’t enough to get Oklahoma City some extra time on national television. Coming within two wins of the conference finals this past spring apparently didn’t do the trick, either.
The Thunder seemingly haven’t been fazed by the holiday snub, though, winning 23 of their first 28 games this season to once again position themselves atop the West. Still, Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander intends to make sure that his team stops getting overlooked.
“Disappointed for sure,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I’d love to play on Christmas Day, and I think we’re that caliber of a team. The NBA makes (its) decisions; you can’t slight them for it. The ball’s in our court to prove to them why we deserve to play on that day.”
No one was sleeping on the Thunder on Monday, when Gilgeous-Alexander went off for a game-high 41 points on 14-of-25 shooting in a 123-105 drubbing of the visiting Washington Wizards. It was the eighth straight win for Oklahoma City, which is 12-1 since Nov. 20.
Making the victory that much sweeter was the season debut of Jaylin Williams. He appeared in 69 games (one start) last season and finished Monday with three points and two assists in eight minutes off the bench.
“It was great to have J-Will back,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “He is the ultimate compete-together player. His ability to endure a trying individual time for himself professionally and stay as spirited and inside the team is really a testament to his character and resilience.”
Indiana also has been on a roll and extended its winning streak to five games with a 111-105 victory over the host Golden State Warriors on Monday. All five Pacers starters scored in double figures, with Myles Turner leading the way with 23 points to go along with 10 rebounds.
Opponents have been held to 104.4 points per game during the Pacers’ winning streak, and Turner is hoping Indiana stays locked in on the defensive end.
“I think the beginning of the season we were all — myself included — kind of just worried about our offense and how we’re going to score the ball,” Turner said. “But that’s one of the things we do best. We’ve got to hang our hat on the defensive side of the ball.
“I think we’re going to continue to keep working.”
To slow down Gilgeous-Alexander, Indiana likely will turn to Andrew Nembhard, who never let Golden State sharpshooter Stephen Curry get into a rhythm on Monday. Curry finished with 10 points and went 2-for-13 from the floor.
“Yeah, I think he takes defense (seriously). That’s his role, especially with the staring unit,” Curry said of Nembhard. “Whoever the best scorer is, go-to guy, he takes that responsibility.”
