Like LeBron James a few days earlier against the Wolves, or Kevin Durant a few years ago, Kristaps Porzingis realized that a shoe size could change a lot of things. Like LeBron, the Latvian saw the referees transform his 3-point basket into a 2-point basket. There were then three seconds left, and the Celtics had just gone from -18 to -2! Finally, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will validate the Thunder's victory, on free throws. But OKC shook…
“It’s a talented young team, and I don’t think they’re here by chance,” recognizes Kristaps Porzingis, author of 34 points and 10 rebounds. “They are playing very well. They're at the top of the West, right? So it was a very good team to play against and a very good experience for us. »
“An opposition between two very good teams”
The Celtics are not even disappointed by their failed heist, and the end of their six-game winning streak. “I found it to be an opposition between two very good teams,” testifies Joe Mazzulla. “The game went as I thought it would: everything came down to the last two possessions. It was a great match from us. »
Opposite, Oklahoma City is not on fire despite this 8th victory in nine matches, and an impressive record against the big names in the league. In a few days, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and his teammates have just dominated the Wolves, the Nuggets twice, and the Celtics! With second place in the West, with more than 70% wins, can we slide the Thunder into the category of title contenders?
“If we start talking about the NBA Finals on January 2, we will miss the point…”
“It just shows that we really play together and prioritize winning over everything else,” notes Chet Holmgren. “But in the long run, it doesn’t prove anything, and it doesn’t satisfy anyone. We know we still have a long way to go. We're only 32 games in, so we have 50 left. If we start talking about the NBA Finals on January 2, we'll miss the point… We've already learned a lot, but there's still lots of lessons to learn, and we need to keep that in mind. »
Same speech from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, always impeccable in his changes of rhythm and his management of the tempo.
“I think we all stay in the moment and I think that’s why we can get better,” believes the Canadian, while Jalen Williams recognizes that there is great confidence within the group. “For us, nothing is impossible, and we started the year knowing that we could compete against anyone. In the end, we just try to win every game. »
