"His fav pg cooked him 1v1": Fans revisit Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s high praise for Andrew Nembhard after Pacers go up 1-0 in NBA Finals
Andrew Nembhard and the Indiana Pacers completed a 15-point comeback in the fourth quarter of Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Nembhard led the way for Indiana, scoring eight points in the fourth quarter to give Tyrese Haliburton a chance to make the game-winning jumper. He made it, and the Pacers escaped Game 1 with a 111-110 upset on the road against the OKC Thunder.
Nembhard's performance in his NBA Finals debut sent fans on a search on social media. Back in the middle of March, Thunder star and NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander showed some love towards his Team Canada teammate on Instagram, calling him his favorite point guard.
Fans reacted strongly to Gilgeous-Alexander's comments, taking the opportunity to throw shade at the All-NBA first-team guard after Nembhard outperformed him down the stretch of Game 1. The former Florida Gator took the defensive assignment against his fellow Canadian, forcing a miss on a jump shot that would have given the Thunder a three-point lead with less than 30 seconds left.
One fan went as far as to say that Gilgeous-Alexander's friend embarrassed him when the two went 1-on-1 during Thursday's game.
He was cooking him a little too comfortably makes sense that they close lmao
Dawg I still can’t get it out my head he cooked him
Shai we set ourselves up w that one
And he shoved Nembhard in the game too. This series finna be cinema.
Despite turning the ball over a historic amount in the first half, Nembhard and the Pacers escaped Game 1 with a road win. To win Indiana's first championship since joining the NBA in 1976, all they need to do is hold serve at home.
Andrew Nembhard and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander helped make NBA Finals history in Game 1
Both Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Andrew Nembhard played for the Canadian national team in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Team Canada finished fifth, losing to the Victor Wembanyama-led French national team in the quarterfinals. Both players, along with OKC Thunder guard Luguentz Dort, used the disappointing finish as fuel for this season.
All three players started for their teams in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the first time in NBA history that three Canadians started a game in the championship round. In fact, there were more Canadians in the starting lineup of the opening game of the NBA Finals than in the Stanley Cup Finals between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers.
After Nembhard, Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers won Game 1, fans are reconsidering just how far the series could go. Heading into the matchup, the Thunder were overwhelming favorites. However, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle put together yet another comeback, finished off by the fourth game-winning shot by Haliburton in the 2025 postseason.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 38 points in Game 1. The NBA's MVP will come back in Game 2 looking for some payback against his friend. However, the Pacers enter the second game on the road looking to take a 2-0 series lead back to Indiana.