One half was enough. Gilgeous-Alexander made it worthwhile for those who tuned in and navigated Peacock for the first time. The reigning MVP didn’t need long to get into a rhythm as he used the first half as a warmup for Opening Night.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 23 points on 8-of-10 shooting, six assists and two rebounds. He shot 1-of-3 from 3 and went 6-of-8 on free throws. He also had three steals and one block. Oh, and he did all this in just 19 minutes before he sat out the second half.
The Oklahoma City Thunder collected a 116-112 preseason win over the Milwaukee Bucks. The road trip was worth it as Gilgeous-Alexander and the rest of the roster looked ready for the 2025-26 regular season.
The most efficient scorer in the NBA didn’t need many possessions to leave his mark. Gilgeous-Alexander barely broke a sweat as several Bucks defenders tried their best to stay in front of him to no avail. This was your textbook surgical performance, where it looked like he was seeing things in slow motion compared to the rest.
The defense deserves its own paragraph, too. Gilgeous-Alexander added to OKC’s brand of causing turnovers. A handful of steals showed he’s the rare NBA superstar who can play on both ends of the floor. At least to the point that he isn’t bleeding buckets.
Preseason is all about experimentation. You saw some of that from Gilgeous-Alexander. If you were to criticize his scoring profile, it would be his outside shot. Specifically on catch-and-shoot looks. The first play resulted in that type of look for him. If he could add it to his repertoire, watch out.