For the second time in as many days, the Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver Nuggets will face off in Oklahoma City.
The teams — two of the top three in the Western Conference — will meet Monday night, one day after the Thunder’s 127-103 home victory Sunday.
The Thunder enter the matchup with a seven-game winning streak — their fourth streak of seven or more victories this season.
Denver is looking to avoid back-to-back losses for what would be the first time since late January.
Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to make his case in the NBA Most Valuable Player race, as does Denver’s Nikola Jokic.
Over his past three games, Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged 44 points, five rebounds and 6.7 assists with just 2.3 turnovers and has made all 28 of his free throws.
Gilgeous-Alexander had 40 points, eight rebounds and five assists with one turnover in Sunday’s win. He was 8 of 8 from the free-throw line and 13 of 21 inside the arc.
“You have to give Shai so much attention because he can beat you one-on-one. He’s great at getting to the foul line,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “So as you give a crowd to him, can you get out to their shooters?”
Gilgeous-Alexander, who leads the NBA in scoring with an average of 32.9 points per game, understands the MVP talk will come with his continued performances, especially with the Thunder holding a double-digit lead in the Western Conference.
“It’s something to talk about,” he said. “It’s entertainment. It’s a part of the sport. It’s an honor to be in the conversation, to be regarded as such.”
Gilgeous-Alexander has 30 or more points in 40 of his 62 games this season. That leads the NBA.
For the Nuggets, Malone said after the loss on Sunday that he was happy with his team’s performance through the first three quarters before the tide turned in the fourth.
He said that must change if Denver is to have a chance to pull off the series split.
“The details matter and the little things matter when you’re playing against a team like that,” Malone said, noting that he was disappointed in his team losing out on plenty of 50-50 balls in the fourth. “… To beat the No. 1 team in the West, you can’t play for three quarters. It’s going to take a 48-minute effort.”
Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren played a role in the Thunder’s defensive success on Sunday with four blocks.
If Holmgren plays Monday, it would be the first time he has played both ends of a back-to-back since returning in early February from a pelvic fracture that kept him out for nearly three months.
Denver’s Aaron Gordon left Sunday’s game less than seven minutes in and didn’t return due to right calf tightness. He has twice missed time due to a calf injury this season, including 10 games in November.
After the game, Malone said he didn’t have an update on Gordon’s status, but Jokic said it was more important to get Gordon back for the postseason than having a quick return this time around.
“Injuries are part of basketball,” Jokic said. “He’s fighting. He’s trying to get back. But hopefully he’s going to be ready and healthy for the playoffs.”
Jokic had 24 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists on Sunday and is averaging 28.8 points (third in the NBA), 12.9 rebounds (third) and 10.5 assists (second) per game this season.
The Monday game will be the last of four matchups between the teams this season. The Thunder won two of the first three.
–Field Level Media
