With the 2022 All-Star voting opening up on Thursday, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander might benefit from recency bias.
In a tight, back-and-forth contest between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Portland Trail Blazers, Gilgeous-Alexander was able to hit the game-winning shot of a game that featured 13 lead changes and 13 ties.
Neither team had a lead larger than 10 points and the final minute saw four lead changes.
With three seconds left in the game, Gilgeous-Alexander was able to work his way with a single dribble to a 14-foot pullup jumper he swished in as the final buzzer sounded.
Despite the Thunder only having 10 players available, Gilgeous-Alexander was able to carry the team to their second consecutive win against a Western Conference playoff opponent.
In a night that saw Damian Lillard become thee leading scorer in Trail Blazers history, Gilgeous-Alexander had all the attention to him as he once again hits another game-winner.
For the Trail Blazers, Lillard led the way with 28 points on 9-of-17 shooting and 6-of-12 from 3. Dame Time was fully activated as he scored six points in the fourth quarter. After receiving a warm welcome, Jerami Grant also contributed with 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting and eight rebounds.
Anfernee Simons finished with 19 points and Josh Hart had 13 points.
Letβs take a look at Thunder player grades.
Credit: Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes 30-point games look as effortless as tying your shoes.
After a slow start that saw him go a cold 2-of-12 from the field, Gilgeous-Alexander was able to turn it up and finish the game with 35 points on 10-of-24 shooting and went a perfect 14-of-14 from the free-throw line.
In the fourth quarter, Gilgeous-Alexander out-dueled Lillard as he scored 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting. This included his game-winning 19-foot jumper as he faded away from a contesting Brandon Williams.
It was Gilgeous-Alexanderβs fourth game-winner of his career. The shot made the rounds on Twitter and that could help Gilgeous-Alexander gain momentum for a potential All-Star bid.
ice cold π§ pic.twitter.com/0c5DRSuNut
β OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) December 20, 2022
βWe gave ourselves a chance defensively all night.β@NickAGallo caught up with @shaiglalex after a walk-off winner at home. pic.twitter.com/T65VN8ST1E
β OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) December 20, 2022
BTWβ¦All-Star voting begins in the morning π³ pic.twitter.com/wSKeNIbUsW
β OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder)
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