Marc Daigneault’s brutally honest look at Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s career night

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault had a somewhat surprising response to the Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in his career – 54 points in Wednesday’s win against the Utah Jazz. Daigneault told reporters that Gilgeous-Alexander’s career night wasn’t all that different.

Compared to his better games this season, Daigneault admitted better seen from his All-Star point guard.

“Not really. It wasn’t much different,” Daigneault said. “Basketball is an efficient game. The NBA has figured it out. It’s what you do with your property. It’s not just about counting statistics. He’s been an efficient scorer and an efficient player on both ends of the floor for a long, long time and he’s been ridiculously consistent for years now. So, like I said, he got the number tonight, but it was no different.”

Gilgeous-Alexander common a similar attitude to head coach Mark Daigneault during his postgame media availability throughout his career.

“I feel like I wasn’t at my best tonight, regardless of what the scoreboard says,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I feel like I could have done better — offensively, shooting, a little bit, and on a couple of reads.” But that comes with the game; you won’t be perfect all the time. I had better games this season, even though it didn’t look like it on the score sheet. It’s just me chasing the growth, not the outcome, and that’s where it comes from.”

While Gilgeous-Alexander’s impressive performance in the fourth quarter led the Thunder to victory, Daigneault says it wasn’t much different from his second big scoring performance of the season.

“He showed good poise and confidence on a night where he was close to that number (50 points),” Daigneault said. “I didn’t think his offense tonight was much different than some other nights.”

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s heartfelt tribute after scoring 54 points

Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander reflected on his 54-point performance in a 123-114 win against the Jazz on Wednesday. Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 13 of his 54 points in the stretch, closed the door on a potential comeback for the Jazz.

However, Gilgeous-Alexander admitted that he did not feel like he had reached the record 54 points.

“It’s not,” Gilgeus-Alexander replied. “I felt like I could have had a lot more. I know this is going to sound very spoiled, but I feel like I didn’t have such a great night. I left a few on the table. But there’s room for improvement, and that’s a good thing.”

Gilgeous-Alexander led all five Thunder starters in double figures with 54 points.