As a one seed, the main job is to protect homecourt.
The Oklahoma City Thunder did just that Tuesday, taking a 2-0 series lead over the eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies with a 118-99 win. Game 2 wasn’t as dominant a showing as Game 1, but it was clear throughout that OKC was the superior side. Outside of a brief stretch in the late third quarter where the game got to single-digits, OKC led comfortably the whole game.
Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren maintained their Game 1 form, combining for 44 points and providing excellent defense, including a game-high five blocks from Holmgren. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander bounced back from his season-low 15 points with a 27-point outburst. Despite his better total, Gilgeous-Alexander still performed below expectations, leaving several opportunities that he has capitalized on all season on the table.
“I feel like I’m getting looks that I usually make, just missing them,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “… Because my team is good, we’ve won two games by a decent margin. They had my back the last two nights.”
Coming into the playoffs, few questions remained with the Thunder.
Elite defense? Check. Capable outside shooting? Check. Servicable rebounding? Check.
And the biggest check of them all, a bona fide superstar who proved his play carries over the the postseason during last year’s playoffs.
One of the only questions that remained was if Gilgeous-Alexander had help.
Even Jordan had Pippen. Kobe had Pau Gasol. Gilgeous-Alexander has to do a lot more to put himself up there with two of the all-time great guards, but in a vacuum, those are the guys who his statistical profile mirrors most.
Through two games, it’s been the help that has carried OKC to a historically dominant beginning to a series. Williams and Holmgren have looked like future All-NBA players, impacting the game greatly on both sides.
While Gilgeous-Alexander being aided by his co-stars may be hurtful to his online MVP narrative that OKC fans have to live through every day, it could be what OKC needs to solidify itself as a flawless contender, something we’ve seen few times in NBA history.
Should Williams and Holmgren play at this level for the rest of the postseason, OKC is without any real holes. They have one of the biggest lineups in the NBA. Everyone who gets in the game can shoot 3s outside of Isaiah Hartenstein, who makes up for his lack of shooting prowess with big man passing trumped only by Nikola Jokic.
History suggests that Gilgeous-Alexander’s poor performance is a blip on the radar. He will likely return to form next game and slice up an already outmatched Memphis team for 30+ points and look like the unstoppable offensive engine he has been for the past three seasons.
Should that happen, Williams and Holmgren become the keys to OKC’s ultimate destiny. And if the first two games of the first round prove anything, it’s that they are more than capable of supporting their superstar when he needs it most.
“Good players making the right play out there, affecting the game at a high level,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of Holmgren and Williams. “They’ve been doing that all season.”
