Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Has Strong Words For Chet Holmgren During NBA Finals
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Has Strong Words For Chet Holmgren During NBA Finals originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Game 2 of the NBA Finals featured a much-needed bounce-back performance for the Oklahoma City Thunder after a stunning defeat in Game 1. The Thunder dominated the Indiana Pacers, comfortably winning a commanding 123-107 outing on Sunday.
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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a big part in the win. The 2024-25 MVP posted 34 points, eight assists, five rebounds, four steals, and one block.
Chet Holmgren was one of the players who struggled in that first loss of the series. The Thunder big man only had six points and six rebounds in Game 1. The second game in Oklahoma City was much better.
Holmgren finished with 15 points, six rebounds, and one block. There was a notable difference from the get-go with the young star.
May 26, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8), forward Chet Holmgren (7) and guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) talk to the media after defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves in game four of the western conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Target Center. © Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
The impressive part of the improvements from Holmgren was the fact that Gilgeous-Alexander said it was all self-motivated. The Thunder superstar had some strong words for his teammate after the series was evened up at 1-1.
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"The special thing about Chet is nobody said anything to him," Gilgeous-Alexander stated after the Game 2 win. "He's such a competitor, and he gets lost in the competition, and I think he's the best version of himself now."
"He's going to go out there and make mistakes just like the rest of us, but his intentions, his intangibles, his skill set, and the things you just can't teach that he does on the basketball court, they'll take over as long as he continues to have that right mindset.
Which he does 99.999 percent of the time. And yeah, you don't have to worry about Chet. He's going to be that guy."
-Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
The Thunder will hope that Gilgeous-Alexander's words resonate with Holmgren moving forward. However, according to the superstar point guard himself, his teammate is capable of figuring everything out all by himself.
Related: Ex-NBA Player Compares OKC Thunder to Old Dynasty Team
Related: Brian Windhorst Sends Major OKC Thunder Warning to NBA
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
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