DENVER — Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander grinned broadly as he left the court with a 2-1 deficit in his second-round series shortly after dropping Game 3 in a 113-104 overtime loss to the Denver Nuggets. Nikola Jokic’s lackluster performance was overshadowed by his supporting cast, which included Aaron Gordon, Michael Porter Jr., and Jamal Murray, after Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault justified Jokic’s defense by pointing to familiarity.
But that’s not what made Gilgeous-Alexander happy, as he disclosed when he was available to the media after the game. Rather, there was a bunch of Nuggets supporters making fun of the MVP contender. Gilgeous-Alexander said he smiled at the jeering from the fans.
I was being taunted by some supporters, and I understand how the game works. I am aware of how life works. It’s simple to make fun of you while you’re up, and I never want to show them that I’m angry, defeated, or anything else of that sort. Nothing has been written. There are many reasons to be hopeful, and the series is far from over. I didn’t play as well as I did in the closing minutes, but I should be able to make up for it in the next game and the one after that.
The Nuggets took a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference semifinal series with a dominant 11-2 run in overtime. Gilgeous-Alexander ended with 13 rebounds, seven assists, two steals, and 18 points on 7 of 22 shots.