BBNBA: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander drops 30 as Thunder trounce Wizards

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads the NBA in lots of things. Steals. His team’s record in the Western Conference. And now he leads the league in the plus-minus category. After an absolute trouncing of the Washington Wizards on Friday where he finished the game with a +38 during his time on the court, SGA now leads the NBA in total plus-minus on the season at +584. That means in the 41 games he has played, he is averaging an incredible +14.2 when he is on the court.

As for other more traditional stats? Well, he nearly dropped a triple-double. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 30 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists, proving once again he has put the Oklahoma City Thunder a force to be reckoned with.

On top of all the statistical excellence, pretty soon SGA could be leading the NBA in MVP rankings as well. Right now, he is the consensus second most likely player to win the coveted award, behind only Nikola Jokic.

Three former ‘Cats post 24 points and seven rebounds

Today is February 24th but that appeared to be the lucky number for the former Wildcats in the NBA last night. Three different Kentucky alumni posted 24 points and seven rebounds. This has to be some kind of record.

Bam Adebayo, Tyrese Maxey, and Immanuel Quickley (who also had 24 points on Thursday) all dropped the around-the-clock stat line of 24/7, and more impressively, each of their teams came away with the win.

As for Bam, his big night against the New Orleans Pelicans got overshadowed by a brawl. Sort of. It is the year 2024 and this is the NBA, so it wasn’t exactly 1970s hockey battle royale, but there were lots of aggressive chest thrusts, assistant coaches holding players back, and the occasional half-hearted push Kentucky player was involved, but at one point Adebayo stood near the back of the pack signaling he would be ready if needed.

Other BBNBA Notes:

• Three former Kentucky players finished Friday with a double-double. Anthony Davis had 28-13 for the Lakers as they got the win over the Spurs. Karl-Anthony Towns put up 22-14, though the Timberwolves fell to the Bucks. And fourth-year Nick Richards scored 11 points and grabbed 13 boards as the Hornets lost to the Warriors.
• Fresh off the release of his debut shoe, the Book 1s, Devin Booker struggled against the Houston Rockets. Though he had 25 points, he shot just 7-24 from the field as the Suns lost their second game in two nights.
• It wasn’t a happy birthday for Jamal Murray who had to sit out of Denver’s game against the Trail Blazers with a strained tibia.

BBNBA Statistics for 2/23/2024

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	P/M	MIN
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC)	147-106 W vs. WAS	30	10-17 (1-3)	7	9	1	1	1	+38	30
Anthony Davis (LAL)	123-118 W vs. SAS	28	10-14 (0-1)	13	0	1	0	1	+10	29
Devin Booker (PHX)	110-114 L vs. HOU	25	7-24 (0-4)	5	2	1	1	1	-15	36
Immanuel Quickley (TOR)	123-121 W vs. ATL	24	9-20 (6-11)	7	5	0	0	3	-1	37
Bam Adebayo (MIA)	106-95 W vs. NOP	24	11-18 (0-0)	7	1	1	3	3	+6	36
Tyrese Maxey (PHI)	104-97 W vs. CLE	24	9-22 (2-5)	7	5	2	0	2	+4	39
Karl-Anthony Towns (MIN)	107-112 L vs. MIL	22	9-22 (3-9)	14	3	1	0	3	-2	35
Tyler Herro (MIA)	106-95 W vs. NOP	15	6-14 (3-5)	6	3	0	1	1	+2	31
Keldon Johnson (SAS)	118-123 L vs. SAS	14	5-9 (1-3)	2	3	0	0	3	-13	29
Cason Wallace (OKC)	147-106 W vs. WAS	13	5-7 (3-5)	5	1	0	0	1	+12	22
Nick Richards (CHA)	84-97 L vs. GSW	11	4-6 (0-0)	13	1	1	1	4	-14	29
Ashton Hagans (POR)	112-127 L vs. DEN	2	1-1 (0-0)	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Jamal Murray (DEN)	127-112 W vs. POR	DNP-Tibia
TyTy Washington (MIL)	112-107 W vs. MIN	DNP-G League
Chris Livingston (MIL)	112-107 W vs. MIN	DNP-G League
Jarred Vanderbilt (LAL)	123-118 W vs. SAS	DNP-Foot
Shaedon Sharpe (POR)	112-127 L vs. DEN	DNP-Core
Olivier Sarr (OKC) [Two-way]	147-106 W vs. WAS	DNP-CD
Brandon Boston Jr. (LAC)	95-101 L vs. MEM	DNP-CD

Tonight in the NBA

8:00: Magic @ Pistons
8:30: Celtics @ Knicks (Randle, Toppin)
9:00: Nets @ Timberwolves (Towns)