The Canadian shipowner was once again key in the victory that sentenced the 4-1 series in favor of Oklahoma City with 34 points and took the most valuable player award (MVP) of the late west conference.
Photo: EFE – Gerald Leong
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With 34 points of the MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Oklahoma City Thunder crushed on Wednesday 124-94 to the Minnesota Timberwolves and classified the finals of the NBA for the first time since 2012.
Oklahoma City, who finished the final of the West Conference against the “Wolves” for a global 4-1, will arrive as a great favorite to the struggle for the ring in front of the Indiana Pacers or the New York Knicks.
With the thrust of their 18,000 fans, the Thunder had no mercy on their first chance to eliminate Minnesota, who stayed at a step of the finals for the second consecutive year.
Gilgeous-Alexander, the brand new most valuable player (MVP) of the season, torn the visiting defense with a last exhibition of 34 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists.
The Canadian base was chosen the MVP of a conference final in which it averaged 31.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game.
“It's a wonderful feeling, something you dream of when you're a child,” said 'SGA' when picking up the trophy.
The base, 26, briefly recalled the complicated beginnings he lived in Oklahoma City upon arrival in 2019, transferred by Los Angeles Clippers, when the Thunder began a long reconstruction.
“The first couple of years that I arrived here were very hard moments on this court, not fun moments. And these fans have been by our side in the good and bad. That is why we are very grateful, first of all,” the Canadian told the spectators.
Although he led his team to the first place of the regular phase, Gilgeous-Alexander did an exercise of humility with his gaze in the great goal of triumph in the finals, which will be launched on June 5.
“I still have a lot to grow. We have a lot of work ahead to achieve our ultimate goal,” he said.
The pivot Chet Holmgren and the forward Jalen Williams, the other local figures, contributed 22 and 19 points.
After accumulating 68 victories in the regular phase, the greatest amount since 2016, the Thunder are now the youngest team in the finals since 1977, with an average of 25.6 years.
Decepcionante Anthony Edwards
From the Timberwolves, a franchise that still does not step on the finals, the superiority of Oklahoma City, the only one of the favorites to the ring that remains standing in these playoffs, was recognized after the fall of other applicants such as the Celtics or the Cavaliers.
“We won the best team,” Chris Finch, coach of Minnesota, awarded after seeing how his players just scored nine points in the first quarter.
The visitors, who failed 10 of their first 11 shots, had no reaction capacity and were already 65-32 below the break, before being at a maximum disadvantage of 37 points.
His young leader, Anthony Edwards, stayed at 19 points, with a 7-18 series in field shots, while the pivot Julius Randle reached 24.
“When you lose such a game there is not much to analyze,” Edwards acknowledged.
“They did what they had to do to win. They dominated the game from the beginning, I took my hat before them,” the talented escort granted, whose performance in the tie paled before Gilgeous-Alexander.
The Canadian, top scorer of the season, continues to underpin his year of consecration as the new NBA superstar.
His last challenge will be to give the title to a franchise that was only crowned in 1979, before the transfer to Oklahoma City, under the brand of the Seattle Supersonics.
His last attempt was in 2012 with the stellar trio formed Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden, who succumbed 4-1 to some Miami Heat with another “Big 3”: LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
“This is a step in the right direction. But we still have a lot of work to do,” Gilgeous-Alexander warned. “We are going to focus on. So open the belts and prepare.”
The rival of Oklahoma City for the ring will be the Knicks or the Pacers, which dominate the Eastern final 3-1.
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