BBNBA: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads in New York

Happy Citrus Bowl day folks. While everyone had their eyes glued to the College Football Playoff and tried to not remember the ball drop, the NBA trudged along. A lot of our former ‘Cats didn’t have an ideal night, but let’s take a look how some did on the last day of 2021.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in a defensive battle

The Knicks,-Thunder game at MSG last night set basketball back approximately 25 years. Neither team shot well at all in the 95-80 win for Oklahoma City. The Knicks had a 37% mark from the field with an 8-41 tally from deep. The Thunder weren’t all that much better either, Oklahoma City shot 41% as a team but had a respectable 42% mark on 43 shots from range.

The bank is ALWAYS open for SGA.@shaiglalex | #NBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/44irFjGfwr

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) January 1, 2022

If you like to just check box scores, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander didn’t really impress all that much. The Canadian had 23 points on 9-24 shooting on Friday night. Shai shot 2-7 from deep, which impacted his overall shooting numbers pretty significantly.

SGA ballin' on both ends of the floor.@shaiglalex | #NBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/7keWYlYt0P

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) January 1, 2022

It was admittedly against a Knicks team that is dealing with injury and COVID-related issues, but it’s always nice to see Shai Gilgeous-Alexander pull out a win for the Thunder. Even if they’re playing on a court meant for the colorblind.

Devin Booker drops 22 in loss to Boston

Despite the loss, it’s good to see Book getting back into form after sitting out with an injury for a small time. He followed up a 38-point performance on Wednesday with 22 points on 26 shots including a 1-5 mark from deep on Friday. Surely not ideal, but I wouldn’t sweat it as the Suns are *checks notes* 27-8 with one of the best calendar years in NBA history. Don’t mean a thing without the ring though.

The Suns finish 2021 tied for the second most wins in a calendar year (reg. season/playoffs combined) pic.twitter.com/RJ1nGakQ3A

— 𝙏𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙞𝙣’ 𝙉𝘽𝘼 🗣️ (@_Talkin_NBA) December 31, 2021

The Suns are dangerous again, they lost but it doesn’t matter in the slightest. This is a team built for the playoffs, we just have to eagerly wait until then.

Statistics

Player	Result	Points	FG (3PA)	Rebounds	Assists	Steals	Blocks	TOs	Mins	+/-
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC)	95-80 W vs. NYK	23	9-24 (2-7)	4	4	2	1	4	35	1
Devin Booker (PHX)	123-108 L @ BOS	22	7-26 (1-5)	6	4	2	0	2	38	-16
Malik Monk (LAL)	139-106 W vs. POR	18	6-11 (2-5)	4	1	0	1	1	30	28
Tyler Herro (MIA)	120-110 W @ HOU	16	5-17 (1-9)	6	9	0	0	4	38	4
Immanuel Quickley (NYK)	95-80 L @ OKC	11	4-12 (1-7)	3	1	0	0	2	26	-12
De’Aaron Fox (SAC)	112-96 L vs. DAL	10	3-14 (1-3)	1	7	1	2	2	31	-26
Kevin Knox (NYK)	95-80 L @ OKC	7	3-8 (1-4)	2	0	0	0	0	15	-10
Keldon Johnson (SAS)	118-105 L @ MEM	6	2-12 (1-5)	6	2	0	0	3	28	-15
Eric Bledsoe (LAC)	116-108 L @ TOR	6	2-5 (0-1)	1	6	0	0	2	17	4
Jarred Vanderbilt (MIN)	120-108 L @ UTA	5	2-5	7	1	1	2	0	22	-11
Julius Randle (NYK)	95-80 L @ OKC	DNP-Health Protocol	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Nerlens Noel (NYK)	95-80 L @ OKC	DNP-Health Protocol	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Anthony Davis (LAL)	138-106 W vs. POR	DNP-Knee	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Olivier Sarr (OKC)	95-80 W vs. NYK	DNP-CD	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Karl-Anthony Towns (MIN)	120-108 L @ UTA	DNP-Health Protocol	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Bam Adebayo (MIA)	120-110 W @ HOU	DNP-Thumb	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Isaiah Jackson (IND)	108-106 L vs. CHI	DNP-Health Protocol	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Enes Freedom (BOS)	123-108 W vs. PHX	DNP-Health Protocol	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

Today in the NBA

6:30 p.m. (NBA TV) Pelicans @ Bucks (Cousins)

7:00 p.m. Bulls @ Wizards

7:00 p.m. Spurs (Johnson) @ Pistons (Diallo, Lyles-OUT)

7:30 p.m. Clippers (Bledsoe, Boston-OUT) @ Nets (Gabriel)

8:00 p.m. Nuggets (Murray-OUT) @ Rockets

9:00 p.m. (NBA TV) Warriors @ Jazz