Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has fully embraced his role as the villain in the Western Conference Finals against the Timberwolves. Despite hostile crowds and chants calling him the "Free-throw Merchant," the Thunder star sees the negativity as motivation, enjoying the challenge of silencing opposing fans while leading his team.
The Oklahoma City Thunder Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is fully embracing his villain role after his stellar Game 4 performance in the Western Conference Finals. Thunder edging out the Minnesota Timberwolves 128-126 to take a commanding 3-1 series lead.
From the very start of Game 4, Timberwolves fans booed Gilgeous-Alexander every time he touched the ball.
The chants accusing him of foul-baiting — “Free-throw Merchant” — rang loud whenever the officials called shooting fouls his way. But rather than being bothered, SGA welcomed the challenge.
“It’s super fun. I don’t know about more fun, but it’s up there with being at home,” Gilgeous-Alexander said after the win, per Josue Pavon. “The whole building’s against you, chanting whatever they’re chanting, screaming whatever they’re screaming, and it’s your job to go out there and play basketball, and shut them up. So, yeah, it’s definitely fun. It definitely adds more to the game.”
After a rough outing in Game 3 where he scored just 14 points on 4-of-13 shooting, Gilgeous-Alexander exploded for 40 points, 10 assists, nine rebounds, and a steal on Monday night.
His aggressive offensive effort, combined with support from Jalen Williams, who poured in 34 points on 13-of-24 shooting, including 6 threes, helped the Thunder maintain their edge in the series.
Defensively, Oklahoma City did a solid job containing Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, limiting him to 16 points on 5-of-13 shooting.
Thank you for reading us! Help us even more.