Watch: Kevin Durant swats Shai Gilgeous-Alexander before landing on him
Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns are hosting the Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the OKC Thunder tonight. Both teams are coming off losses and looking to bounce back with a big win.
Durant had an impressive game against the LA Lakers in the Suns’ last game but couldn’t lead them to victory. “SGA” also had a near triple-double against the Sacramento Kings but fell short on the road.
The Suns-Thunder has been a tight battle since tip-off. KD has a team-high 24 points with still 4:32 left in the fourth quarter. Gilgeous-Alexander, meanwhile, has a game-high 28 points. The two rarely guard each other, but in one sequence, it happened.
Here's the video:
Kevin Durant continues to carry a heavy load for the Phoenix Suns, with Devin Booker still out. Suns coach Frank Vogel has been asking him to do a yeoman’s job at both ends of the court. Bradley Beal has played in the last few games, but Durant remains the primary option on offense.
On defense, Durant has been asked to do more as well. He's arguably the team’s best rim protector. Jusuf Nurkic is a wide-bodied center who can jostle with bruising big men but doesn't have the athleticism to deter rim attackers. KD does that and has been doing it at an elite level for Phoenix.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, meanwhile, is one of the NBA’s best in attacking the paint. He has a plethora of moves, some of them are herky-jerky stunts that leave defenders off balance. On a few occasions, he was gotten by Durant. In the aforementioned play, though, he couldn’t get it done against the “Slim Reaper.”
Before the game ends, Kevin Durant and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will have a few more opportunities to take the bragging rights.
Kevin Durant and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are playing at All-Star level
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a breakout campaign last season, which earned him his first All-Star selection.
He averaged 31.4 points, 5.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. This season, he has not been scoring as much as the OKC Thunder as plenty of options on that end. In every other area, though, he remains as impactful as ever.
While his scoring has dropped, his assists, rebounds and steals have considerably gone up. He's averaging 7.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 2.3 steals per contest, all career-high numbers. “SGA” is expected to make the All-Star team again.
Kevin Durant, meanwhile, is a staple in the said event. He's playing even better than he did last season.
Durant is averaging 30.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.1 blocks per game. KD has been the Suns’ best player at both ends of the floor and should be named to his 14th All-Star game by February.