SGA Reacts to Historic 20-Point Game Streak Ending, 'Always Treat the Game with Respect'
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander says he snapped his NBA record streak of consecutive 20-point games in Thursday night's home opener win over the Denver Nuggets because he saw it as a measure of "respect" not to play against his opponents' bench in a blowout.
Gilgeous-Alexander asked to be subbed out of Thursday's 96-84 victory with just 17 points, snapping a historic 141-game regular-season streak that stretched back to October 2024.
"I was going to go out there, and I saw that they had subbed, so I was just like, 'We should sub, too,'" Gilgeous-Alexander told reporters after the win.
"I feel like you always treat the game with respect. God willing, I have many more games to start another streak, so it's not the end of the world."
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault previously said Gilgeous-Alexander had "asked out of the game" after the Nuggets called a timeout 1:43 remaining in the fourth.
The Nuggets, who were trailing by 17 points at the time, used the same break to sub out their own starting lineup.
"He's got a historic streak going... the class that it shows, and the perspective that it shows, for him to say, 'Hey, I'm out now. The game's calling for me to be subbed out of the game,'" Daigneault said.
"Of all of the things that I admire about him, that's towards the top of the list in terms of moments that I appreciate about him. It shows tremendous class as a competitor."
The Thunder trailed early as Gilgeous-Alexander missed his first seven shots but later recovered to lead a dominant third-quarter stretch.
The comeback allowed the Thunder (2-0) to remain undefeated despite a low-efficiency night during which the home team shot just 38 percent from the field and 26 percent from deep.
Gilgeous-Alexander, who went 6-for-19 from the field and 3-for-11 from behind the arc, will look to start a new 20-point game streak with a more efficient performance Sunday against against the visiting Los Angeles Clippers.
