Wednesday night’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans is one that Oklahoma City Thunder fans will not soon forget. Trailing by three with 4.5 seconds to go, the Thunder inbounded the ball to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who then knocked down a highly difficult shot from three to tie it all up at 110-110 with only 2.3 seconds left on the clock. The game appeared to be going into overtime, but Devonte’ Graham had other plans as he nailed a 61-foot buzzer beater to seal the game and give the Pelicans a 113-110 win.
The loss was a crushing one, and with the Los Angeles Clippers in town Saturday night, even the Thunder faithful had to wonder if OKC had it in them to pull out a win. The Thunder played the Clippers close early before taking a lead late in the first quarter. OKC held that lead all the way until midway through the fourth, and while neither team led by more than 8 points at any given moment, the Clippers seemed to have sealed a win after Nicolas Batum hit a three to put LA up 101-97 with just 33.8 seconds to go.
The Thunder never quit however, and after Justise Winslow missed two free throws, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander grabbed a rebound and called a timeout with 6.9 seconds remaining. Mike Muscala took the inbounds pass for OKC, and he immediately passed to Shai, who found himself in a similar spot as Wednesday evening. This time, however, the Thunder trailed by just two, so when he side-stepped his defender and put up the three-point attempt, it was a Thunder victory as the ball sank through the net.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to be underrated across the league, likely due to playing for a tanking team. Still, he’s young, and his future is obviously very bright, and as a result, Oklahoma City’s future is as well. SGA has hit shots like this before, and you can pretty much guarantee he’ll be doing the same for years to come.