Surrounded by thousands who celebrated what they thought was a game-winner, Phenizee Ransom cosplayed as Eoyore. His whistle’s high-pitch zap was inaudible in the chaotic scene. But Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s demoralized body language hinted at what happened to the OKC crowd.<\/p>\n
Tied at 101 points apiece, Gilgeous-Alexander intercepted Daniss Jenkins’ pass. He had 12 seconds to cook up another MVP-esque moment. On an island with Javonte Green, the reigning MVP created enough space to knock down the stepback 3-pointer with four seconds left.<\/p>\n
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What a finish. Gilgeous-Alexander scored the game-winner to help avoid the consequential upset. Instead, his clutch-time bucket was wiped away with an offensive foul. While technically correct, it was quite the gutsy call to make at that juncture of the game.<\/p>\n
Alas, no harm happened. The Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> survived an upset attempt with a 114-110 overtime win<\/a> over the Detroit Pistons<\/a>. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 47 points on 12-of-19 shooting and went 21-of-25 on free throws.<\/p>\n A day later, the L2M Report backed up the controversial call. Shouldn’t be a shocker. In the report, it stated: “Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC) extends his off-arm into Green (DET) and delivers contact that affects his ability to defend.”<\/p>\n In terms of mistakes made, only one happened \u2014 and it favored the Thunder. Jaylin Williams got away with a shooting foul on Jenkins at the 1:20 mark of the fourth quarter. The incorrect non-call was described: “Williams (OKC) lowers his left arm and initiates contact with Jenkins’ (DET) arm that affects his shot attempt.”<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n And that’s all from the L2M report. Honestly, not bad. Especially considering how high-stakes things were from the Thunder. Their margin for error is paper-thin the rest of the way. They can’t afford to drop a gimme with the San Antonio Spurs right behind them for the first seed.<\/p>\n