This interaction between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Kevin Durant was hilarious 😭
KD: “Imma guard [Shai], too”
SGA: “Imma put my rook on you”
KD: “Nah see don’t do that, I want
#2
”
Was Shai threatening to put Jalen Williams on KD? 🤔
My favorite part of their interview was the ending 🤝
KG: “Anything I can help you with, you hit me.”
Chet: “Let’s get in the gym.”
KG: “Let me know i’ll pull up on you.”
Chet: “Yeah i’ll try to pick your brain a little bit.”
(via
@shobasketball
)
KG: “Bro you blocking everything, f*cking blocking everything.”
Chet: “Yessir I learned it from somebody.”
*Points to KG*
This exchange between Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren and Kevin Garnett is awesome 🤝⛈️
(via
@shobasketball
)
Chet Holmgren had an important question to begin Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s postgame media availability 🤣
Chet: “Mr.
#2
, how does it feel to know nobody can guard you?”
SGA: “Next question… Goodnight Chet.”
Fun things are happening in OKC folks…
It’s so cool to see OKC’s former big 3 so involved with the current big 3.
Chet and KD seemed to have developed a relationship working out with each other.
Harden and JDub seem to be forming a strong relationship.
And SGA and Russ are often seen talking after LAC-OKC games.
Charles Barkley: “If you guys get that DirectTV package, yall gotta go see Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the OKC Thunder.”
Ernie Johnson: “Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren.”
OKC has been getting some serious love across the NBA throughout the All-Star break ⚡️
“I honestly think, [getting traded to the Thunder] is one of the better things to happen in my career… And I have so much fun playing basketball in this organization.”
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ⚡️
“Shai challenged the entire Golden State Warriors organization, he challenged their entire fanbase, he challenged everything in their existence.”
I’m sorry but this is getting so ridiculously blown out of proportion lol. All this over an Instagram post? 😭
“These guys are coming, everyone can feel it. You could feel it last year and now they have Chet back healthy playing at a high level… OKC’s coming and they’re loaded with talent, extremely well coached,”
— Warriors coach Steve Kerr on the Thunder
Bradley Beal when asked what made Shai Gilgeous-Alexander so tough tonight:
“He been doing it all year, it’s not just us. I mean he’s been kicking everybody’s ass.”
It looks like nearly the entire OKC Thunder roster participated in what is likely the NBA’s biggest-ever jersey swap with Tre Mann 🫡
Mann received jerseys from:
Jaylin Williams
Josh Giddey
Lindy Waters III
Lu Dort
Chet Holmgren
Jalen Williams
Isaiah Joe
Aaron Wiggins
It appears that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has heard the news that he’s been selected to the NBA All-NBA First Team all the way in Madrid 🤩
(via
@unlkdnem
/ IG)
Chet Holmgren scored 31 of his teams 97 points in a STACKED run full of NBA players 🔥
The game a cast including:
Kevin Durant
Trae Young
Michael Porter Jr.
Jalen Green
Terry Rozier
Austin Rivers
Here all all of Chet’s 31 points:
(via
@ThroughTheLens
)
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich on Chet Holmgren:
“He’s fantastic… He’s got a complete game, he’s smart, he knows how to play, he’s a good one for sure.”
Pop on Chet and Wemby going at each other:
“They’re gonna be a lot of fun for everybody to watch over their careers.”
Gregg Popovich on Thunder GM Sam Presti, who started his career with the Spurs:
“Sammy’s a pain in the ass. He’s brilliant, he’s fantastic, which I knew from day one… He and Clay [Bennett] have built a class organization, something that everybody in the league should emulate.”
“I’m gonna say this in a nice way… Chet Holmgren, you may call it playing with a competitive edge, I would say he’s an asshole… He’s got some shit to him… And that to me, gives me hope that he ultimately turns out to be an All-NBA player”
— JJ Redick 😂
(via
@OldManAndThree
)
“If Memphis wants to dump the ball down to Steven Adams… okay?… Deandre Ayton’s gonna pound on him with 14-foot fadeaway turnarounds?”
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon’s response to questioning if Chet Holmgren can play center in the NBA 🤣
(via The Hoop Collective)
Chet Holmgren talks about competing with Victor Wembanyama
“I plan on playing a long time, and i’m sure he does too so there’ll be no choice but to go back and forth.”
Chet also talked about going at Wemby in the flow of the game and not making it the “Chet vs. Vic show”
“He’s challenging because he really wants it… Offensively he’s ridiculously talented. He’s a tough cover for bigs, he’s a tough cover for guards… You have to respect him at all three levels, and he’s just getting started.”
Steph Curry 🤝 Chet Holmgren
Jaylin Williams hacks Josh Giddey’s Media Day interview 😂
JWill: “If you had to pick someone on the team, to say who’s the best TikToker who would you pick?”
Giddey: “Well it’s not you… JDub, Tre Mann, Aaron Wiggins, Shai, Lu, Chet,”
JWill: “So everybody but me?”
JG: “Yea,”
Victor Wembanyama on playing against Chet Holmgren and the Thunder:
“I feel like he hurt us in the first half. I know it’s just preseason but for sure the games against OKC are gonna be interesting.” 👀
This narrative throwing tons of backlash at the Thunder for rebuilding that is being spun by national media is so odd. Shai has missed the playoffs 1 time in his young career and the media acts like Shai hasn’t ever won a game. At least OKC is rebuilding competently with a plan.
Thunder rookies Chet Holmgren and Cason Wallace have both made the NBA’s Rookie of the Year Ladder 🌟
Holmgren is ranked
#2
and only trails Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama
Wallace came in at
#10
Thoughts? 🤔
Josh Giddey learns that he joined LeBron James as the only player to record 10+ points, 5+ rebounds, and 5+ assists in his FIBA World Cup debut 🤣
What he didn’t know, was that his Thunder teammate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander would accomplish the same feat just a few hours later ⚡️
Nuggets Head Coach Michael Malone raving about Shai Gilgeous-Alexander after SGA’s 37 point performance.
“That guy is unguardable. I mean he is a hell of a player.”
“We make different types of money... It’s not really a competition… I tried to keep up in LA and New York… I got a call from my financial team like ‘What are you doing?’”
Jalen Williams on trying to compete with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in fashion 😂
(via
@23Jbrown
)
Does Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hate Bradley Beal? 🤔🤔🤔🤔
This whole thing is so funny man, he does this after almost every game.
If you don’t wanna end up on Shai’s Instagram play some better defense lol i’m sure it’s not personal 🤣
It’s getting really hard for me to stay rational about Chet Holmgren when every time I open this app a different advanced stat tells me he’s a top 15 player already.
“He comes down, does a crossover and I almost rip him. He goes ‘Good hands young fella’ and the rest of the game he took like 2 dribbles and had like 35, he wasn’t missing a shot.”
Jalen Williams’ welcome to the NBA moment guarding Kevin Durant & Devin Booker 😭
(via
@23Jbrown
)
I can’t emphasize this enough but it’s almost unbelievable that this is the same player from 2 years ago when the Rockets left him wide open every possession begging him to shoot. Really a testament to how hard Lu worked on it, he’s become a completely different basketball player
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault on OKC rookie Chet Holmgren:
“He’s excited as a competitor and he’s ambitious. He has really high expectations for himself and matches those with his work ethic. He’s not just a guy with his head in the clouds – he’s willing to put the work in,”
“The first day he got drafted, he landed in OKC… And the very first day he texted me. He said ‘Can we get in the gym?’ This was his first day, from that point on I knew that he works hard.”
Josh Giddey tells an awesome story about Chet Holmgren 🔥
(via
@sportsanimal
/ YT)
“He’s shifty, plays at his own pace, nobody can rush him, he’s tall enough to shoot over you... We knew coming into the game that he was gonna make tough shots… and he ended up with 31 after scoring 2 in the 1st quarter.”
- Steph Curry on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s game.
“I had eye surgery… My first game back it felt like I was shooting at two rims.”
Jalen Williams talks about the repercussions of the eye injury he suffered in his NBA debut and how it affected him throughout most of his rookie season with the Thunder 🤕
(via
@DontTripWeGotU
)
“The Canadians enter this tournament, arguably with the single best player in the entire field, in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He’s as good, or better than Luka Doncic and anybody the American team has…”
- ESPN’s
@TimBontemps
on SGA & Team Canada 🇨🇦⚡️
Thunder rookie Cason Wallace has inexplicably dropped out of the top 10 on NBA’s Rookie of the Year ladder…
Chet Holmgren remains
#2
behind Victor Wembanyama.
Thoughts? 🤔
“It’s gon make my job easier, playing with somebody that’s got that talent. His gravity on that court is huge.”
Chet Holmgren talks about playing with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander this season with Kevin Garnett 🔥
(via
@shobasketball
)
Kevin Durant will be joining the NBA’s “Hooper Vision” to commentate and break down tonight’s In-Season Tournament game between the Warriors and the Thunder 👀
“The team is so talented. In the two weeks i’ve spent here i’m really surprised how much talent we have as a team. The competitiveness in the pickup games was very intense and I saw so much talent.”
Vasilije Micic on his first impressions on the Thunder ⚡️
“Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander], Josh Giddey, Lu Dort, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren. That’s potentially a lineup that could be the best lineup in basketball within the next 5 years.”
—
@_JasonLT
ranks the Thunder as a top 10 team in the NBA next season 👀
(via
@TheVolumeSports
)
Chet Holmgren says that since he and Josh Giddey were on different teams today, they were unable to work on developing their alley-oop connection, but he & Shai Gilgeous-Alexander practiced it a bit.
“What does Shai & Chet look like together on the court?”
Chet: “Exciting.” 👀
“Who’s the most likely to get crossed up on an island?”
*JDub smirks and points at Chet Holmgren*
*Discussion*
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: “Yo Jalen, didn’t you cross Chet on an island?”
Chet: “Way back in college, when he lost by 25, he did make me fall.”
(via
@SLAMonline
)
Lu Dort says he still throws some full-court pressure at Shai Gilgeous-Alexander every once in a while during Thunder training camp.
SGA says he’s wasting his time and energy 🤣
“Chet’s a problem. He can play, he can dribble, he can shoot, has great length, great shot blocker, he’s only gonna get better… You don’t see many mistakes out of him. The sky’s the limit for Chet.”
Draymond Green on Chet Holmgren
(via
@anthonyVslater
)
$500k or dinner with Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault?
Jalen Williams didn’t even hesitate 😭
“I’ve had dinner with Mark Daigneault like four times. I’m getting $500k, i’m not even thinking about it.” 😂😂😂
(via Jalen Williams/YT, )
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander says that Jalen Williams got all dressed up when the team went to watch Black Panther 😂
JDub: “I had a Black Panther shirt and some Black Panther pajamas.”
SGA: “He had a Black Panther mask, he had the suit, and he had the claws.”
(via
@SLAMonline
)
Last thing:
Chet Holmgren didn’t get a shot up in nearly 10 4th quarter minutes.
With the type of game he was having that just can’t happen.
And this falls on everybody, coaching, the guards not getting him the ball, but Chet also has to demand the ball.
“Chet has a little bit of grit to him, you can tell he isn’t soft. He plays with a tenacity that bigs need, and he’s very skilled. He’s a little more polished than Victor.”
Trey Murphy says he’d take Chet Holmgren over Victor Wembanyama for next season ⛈️
Sounds like Jaylin Williams and the Thunder are not doing any rookie hazing on Vasilije Micic
“I can’t do that to him.” 😭
Micic is a 29-year-old rookie and is 8 years older than JWill 💀
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault on Jalen Williams’ summer:
“Physically and skill-wise, he’s had a really productive summer. He was with the Team USA Select team… It’s hard to place specific expectations on what will change, but I know he’s improved. I give him a lot of credit,”
Thunder rookie Cason Wallace has inexplicably dropped out of the top 10 on NBA’s Rookie of the Year ladder…
Chet Holmgren remains
#2
behind Victor Wembanyama.
Thoughts? 🤔
Thunder rookies Chet Holmgren and Cason Wallace have both made the NBA’s Rookie of the Year Ladder 🌟
Holmgren is ranked
#2
and only trails Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama
Wallace came in at
#10
Thoughts? 🤔
“I’m fine... I caught an elbow to the face & that’s what it is… It was great to compete with another competitor. I love to compete so it’s always great to have a dude across from you who’s gonna go at it with you.”
Chet Holmgren on being elbowed & competing with Draymond Green
Thunder guards Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada) and Josh Giddey (Australia) were both awarded the TCL Player of the Game award for their performances today ⚡️
BREAKING: Kai Sotto has been called to attend the Adelaide 36ers camp this month with the preseason schedule to reportedly include training in the US, and playing games against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Phoenix Suns.
(via
@philstarnews
)
I hope whoever runs the NBA Rookie Ladder is watching Cason Wallace defend Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell on defense and then never miss shots on offense.
Josh Giddey - “Spent a lot of time in the gym getting up shots. Obviously having Chip England here, one of the best shooting coaches if not the best in the world — here at the Thunder is someone that’s perfect for me to use as much as possible. He’s been great.”
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault on the team feeding Lu Dort early and often in his hometown of Montreal:
“All four of those guys were taking care of their boy.”
Wholesome stuff man, this team’s chemistry is special.
You can’t not love Chet’s mentality.
It’s gotta be so cool to be a Minnesota kid and a basketball junkie to be able to have these conversations with a Minnesota and NBA legend like Kevin Garnett.
Would love to see more of these two in the future
“In an NBA game it often comes down to star power, & Team Canada has a superstar who’s name is Shai Gilgeous Alexander, & if you don’t know now you know. Oklahoma City has a star!”
— ESPN’s
@ramonashelburne
on the difference between Canada & Team USA ⚡️
“The one thing that stands out to me is the fearlessness… He’ll get dunked on 5 times in a game if it means contesting 5 rim shots… He’s willing to fail, he’s willing to be embarrassed,”
Loved this answer from Mark Daigneault on Chet Holmgren’s intangible traits on defense 🫡
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Joe Mazzulla playing him only 10 minutes tonight…
“It’s cool, i’m just honored to be here, play with the best players in the world, and showcase my skills on this stage.”
(via
@joe_mussatto
)
“Playing with a dude like [Shai] is gonna be amazing. As a team, it’s gonna be the bigger picture… This team hasn’t had someone that is necessarily a lob threat. So, figuring out the timing and chemistry of that will take time.”
— Chet Holmgren on playing with SGA ⛈️