Shai Gilgeous-Alexander took center stage after the Oklahoma City Thunder sealed a trip to the NBA Finals for the first time in over a decade.
Following a dominant closeout win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Western Conference Finals MVP spoke about the motivations that fueled his performance.
“Me personally, I wanted two things,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I didn’t want to go back to Minnesota, travel-wise. And then I wanted the fans to be able to enjoy the moment with us.”
The All-NBA guard emphasized the importance of delivering the win on home court, highlighting the energy inside Paycom Center.
“I wanted them to be able to see it unfold in front of their eyes,” he added. “Go home, get drunk, whatever they do—I wanted them to have fun with the moment.”
After receiving the Conference Finals MVP trophy, Gilgeous-Alexander quickly handed it off to his teammates.
“They’re special,” he said. “They make the NBA not feel like a job.”
He compared the joy of this postseason run to playing AAU basketball at 15 years old, crediting team chemistry as a key reason for their success.
The Thunder guard reflected on how his son helps him maintain perspective in the middle of high-stakes playoff basketball.
“You get caught up in so many things that don’t actually matter,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “He puts on the forefront everything that actually matters in life.”
He also credited past struggles—like the 22- and 24-win seasons earlier in his tenure in Oklahoma City—for shaping his mindset.
“Those hard times have shown me—you stay humble, you persevere, you can turn things around,” he said.
As for the franchise’s long-term vision, Gilgeous-Alexander said it wasn’t laid out in words but in actions.
“Sam didn’t lay out no vision for me. He just traded for me,” he said. “But he knows what he’s doing.”
Gilgeous-Alexander was also clear that the Thunder’s postseason run is far from over.
“This isn’t our goal,” he said. “We didn’t start the season like, ‘We want to win the West.’ We want to win an NBA championship.”
In the postgame celebration, former Thunder center Kendrick Perkins shared a brief moment with him.
“He just said he was proud of me, told me to keep going,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Nice, short, and sweet.”
While the Thunder ended a nine-year Finals drought, the team is focused on the four wins that still lie ahead.
“We were focused, we were together, we were energetic,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “And the game turned out the way it did because of that.”
