There was a moment late in Game 3 of the NBA Finals where it felt like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, this year’s MVP, might finally hit a wall.
But if you ask him about it, there’s no time for walls, no time for excuses.
“You got to suck it up,” Shai told reporters Thursday via House of Highlights. “There’s a maximum four games left in the season. It’s what you worked the whole season for. It’s what you worked all summer for— get it done and try to get a win.”
That’s about as blunt as it gets. And it comes after a night where Indiana made life miserable for OKC’s superstar. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with just 24 points and four assists, a noticeable dip from the 34-point, eight-assist performance he dropped in Game 2. But more than that, he turned the ball over six times, his most ever in a playoff game, and managed just three points in the fourth quarter.
“I don’t think it was anything out the blue,” Shai said postgame. “We’ve had plenty of physical games. Games like that where I’ve been great late, games where I’ve stunk late.”
Indiana have made defending Shai a team mission. Shai was picked up 65.5 feet from the basket on average, the deepest of his career, according to GeniusIQ tracking.
The Pacers blitzed him 12 times (a personal playoff high), and he was the primary defender on 22 field goal attempts, also the most of his playoff career.
Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard, who’s been glued to Shai all series, said it’s all about persistence.
“We all have to be locked in and tied together on that end of the floor.”
Shai didn’t have his usual takeover in the clutch. But he’s not pointing fingers. No complaining. No built-in outs.
Just one message: suck it up and go win.
