OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder have reached a moment of truth.
The youngest team in league history to win at least 60 regular-season games can validate that success when it hosts Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals on Sunday.
It’s a big deal for a Thunder team that lost to Dallas in the conference semifinals last year as the No. 1 seed in the West.
“It’s do or die,” Gilgeous-Alexander said after losing Game 6 in Denver. “It’s what you live for, it’s what you worked your whole life for. It’s either your team continues or your dream ends. So, you lay it all out there on the floor and you live with the results.”
The winner advances to play Minnesota in the Western Conference finals, starting Tuesday.
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said the team’s approach will not change, even with all that is at stake. After all, Oklahoma City won a league-best 68 games in the regular season.
“It’s recurring themes that you just revisit in these situations, and if you need new material in these situations, then your material was wrong in the first place,” he said.
Gilgeous-Alexander, an MVP finalist, has returned to form after a slow offensive start in the series. He is averaging 28.8 points. 7.0 rebounds and 7.0 assists while shooting 51% from the field in the six games.
Gilgeous-Alexander will face a Denver squad that won the NBA title in 2023 and .
“We’ve got to do what we’ve been doing in the series,” Denver interim coach David Adelman said. “We’ve got to hang early and then rely on our chemistry and the fact that we’ve been around each other for a long time. That’s where experience can really help you.”
Jokic, a three-time MVP and a finalist this year, has had two great games in the series and three that are below his standards. He had , a Nuggets win in Oklahoma City. He .
In the three games in between, he shot 33% from the field and his scoring average dipped to 21.3.
One of Jokic’s most important helpers might not play. Adelman said Aaron Gordon, a key player for Denver throughout the playoffs, . The versatile 6-foot-8 forward hit the dramatic game winner in Game 1. He has averaged 14.5 points and 9.2 rebounds in the series while shooting 45% from 3-point range.
Thunder forward Chet Holmgren said the Thunder won’t worry about things out of their control.
“It’s going to come down to who’s willing to really execute and win each possession all throughout the game,” he said. “You can’t worry about winning the game, you’ve got to win a possession first and then worry about the next one. That’s what we’ve we got to do, that’s what they’re going to try and do, and we’ve got to do (it) better.”
Denver Nuggets at Oklahoma City Thunder
When/Where to Watch: Game 7, 3:30 p.m. EDT (ABC)
Series: Tied, 3-3
BetMGM says: Thunder by 8.5.
What to Know: With the two MVP candidates possibly canceling each other out, the supporting stars likely will be critical in Game 7. Oklahoma City’s Jalen Williams was an All-Star this season, but he has struggled the last three games, shooting a combined 10 for 43 from the field. He’s capable of breaking out, as he did with a . But he’s only averaging 16.5 points and shooting 33.7% from the field in the series, way down from his regular-season numbers. Denver’s Jamal Murray hasn’t shot his best in the series either, but he overcame an illness to score 25 points and be a critical factor in Denver’s Game 6 win. He’s up and down, but if the good version of him shows up, Oklahoma City could be in trouble.
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