Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is putting up Most Valuable Player numbers and posting historic ones.
The Canadian guard on Wednesday scored 50 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Phoenix Suns 140-109.
Gilgeous-Alexander became the ninth player in NBA history to score at least 50 points on three or more occasions in a seven-game span, the Thunder said.
Photo: AFP
The list includes Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant, Wilt Chamberlain and Elgin Baylor, but Gilgeous-Alexander brushed it off when asked about joining those players.
“Those guys have done so many great things with the game,” he said. “I’m so far off of that. Like, it’s cool, but I don’t think too much of it. The most important thing is to know I’m getting better through this process.”
Gilgeous-Alexander scored a career-high 54 points in a win over the Utah Jazz on Jan. 22 and 52 three games later in a loss against the Golden State Warriors.
He called his success the byproduct of a bigger goal. The Thunder have the league’s best record at 40-9 and they want to win an NBA title after reaching the Western Conference semi-finals last season.
“Some nights it’s going to look like this, some nights, it’s going to look like missed shots,” he said. “Still playing through those [off shooting nights] and finding a way to win through those — that’s what I’m after.”
Elsewhere on Wednesday, it was:
‧ 76ers 101, Heat 108
‧ Hawks 125, Spurs 126
‧ Hornets 102, Bucks 112
‧ Jazz 131, Warriors 128
‧ Kings 111, Magic 130
‧ Nets 102, Wizards 119
‧ Nuggets 144, Pelicans 119
‧ Pistons 115, Cavaliers 118
‧ Raptors 107, Grizzlies 138
‧ Timberwolves 127, Bulls 108
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