Friday 3 January 2020 10:38, UK
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and in-form Oklahoma City Thunder are "creating havoc for a lot of people" in the Western Conference, said Gametime analyst Caron Butler.
Gilgeous-Alexander had 25 points and the Thunder overcame 30 points by DeMar DeRozan to beat the Spurs 109-103. It was OKC's fourth straight win and their first in San Antonio in nine attempts.
Chris Paul had 10 of his 16 points in the final quarter to ensure the Thunder won the battle between the West's current seventh and eighth seeds in the Western Conference, extending their lead over the Spurs to four games.
Speaking after the game, NBA analysts Caron Butler and Greg Anthony hailed the play of Gilgeous-Alexander and said the Thunder were confounding early-season expectations.
"They are doing it by committee and having fun doing it," said Butler. "They are doing a solid job on the defensive end of the floor. The development of Gilgeous-Alexander… he is doing a remarkable job getting into the paint and living in the paint. He has got the floater game, the left-hand game… he is one of the best finishers in the game without dunking.
"What is really helping him is playing alongside Chris Paul. We thought [Paul's tenure in OKC] would be a 'rental' situation and that Chris would elect to get out of there. But you know what, they are trending in the right direction and creating havoc for a lot of people in the Western Conference."
Anthony eagerly praised the contributions of reserve Thunder guard Dennis Schroder.
"It is a three-headed monster, you've got to throw Dennis Schroder in there as well," he said. "All three of those guys (Paul, Gilgeous-Alexander and Schroder) are really good defensively, they can all score and pass it well.
"The chemistry is what has been most surprising. Three guys typically used to having the basketball who have learned to play without it. That has been the biggest key to their success.
"They are a good basketball team and it is going to create some interesting dynamics for (Thunder GM) Sam Presti in the future. Does he break things up to build for the future or see what these guys can accomplish? I'm anxious to see how this plays out."
Gilgeous-Alexander echoed those positive sentiments in a post-game interview in the aftermath of the Thunder's win.
Asked about the keys to his team's winning formula, the second-year guard said: "Our intensity and sticking with the game plan. We know if we do those two things we can get stops against any team in the league, no matter who it is.
"I'm trusting my work. I put it in every day. You might not make every shot but I'm trusting my work and being confident. That is what I am focusing on.
"We have players willing to make plays across the board. We all have confidence in each other so making plays down the stretch isn't an issue for us."
