This season, the playoffs have been full of heartbreak and stunning finishes. However, it would be hard to imagine a more crushing defeat than the one the Oklahoma City Thunder suffered against the Denver Nuggets. The battle of the MVPs started with a thrilling 121-119 win for Nikola Jokic and Co. This came after OKC’s Chet Holmgren missed both of his free throws as the Nuggets grabbed a rebound to set up Aaron Gordon for yet another Game 2 winning bucket!

The Denver forward drilled a three-pointer for his second iconic shot of this season’s playoffs. Despite this massive setback, OKC Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander doesn’t seem too worried about the rest of the series. But he made a huge confession after the loss.

SGA reflected upon the loss after finishing the night as arguably Thunder’s best player. The 26-year-old put up 33 points to go with ten rebounds and eight assists as he flirted with a triple-double. “Not too sure. Like it’s hard to reflect this this… This fast after the game, but what it felt like they were just doing a good job of like loading the elbows on drives.” Gilgeous-Alexander said after the loss.

“We got a couple shots that were makeable for sure, and were pretty good looks. But there’s there’s definitely things we could, we could be better at tactically down the stretch for sure. And I know myself, I… I’ll look at those things to see if we can be better for the next game. I could be better for next game for them, for sure.” The Thunder star stated that Denver basically made better plays down the stretch and capitalized on OKC’s missed shots.

However, he also pointed out that Nikola Jokic and the rest of the Nuggets players were loading elbows on the drives to create that extra bit of space. It proved to be the key difference between OKC and Denver during the latter stages of the game, according to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. This forced the OKC star to make a confession as he and the Thunder look to shrug off this defeat heading into Game 2. SGA stated that he and his team could’ve been better tactically, something which they will work on heading into Game 2. Indeed, they’ll have to do much better to contain Nikola Jokic, who had a spectacular night scoring 42 points, alongside 22 rebounds and six assists.

OKC’s fouling tactic, which has worked for most of the season, backfired on the night. The Thunder have been the best team in the league defensively, but when the game is close, they opt not to trust it. They fouled when they were up by 3, and refused to yield a game-tying shot while they bet on their free throw shooting. However, this time around, Mark Daigneault’s tactics did not seem to work as the Nuggets snatched the win right out of OKC’s hands. This has led to a massive change in the Thunder locker room as they hope to improve their game plan to avoid defeat in Game 2.

Game 1 loss forces a major change in OKC’s locker room

The Denver Nuggets defied the odds and pulled off a wild comeback to defeat OKC Thunder on the road. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Co. were up by six with two minutes left, and then up by three with only 11 seconds on the clock. Despite that, they failed to close the game out. However, things could’ve been a lot different had Thunder’s youngster, Chet Holmgren, made his shots from the free throw line. The former Gonzaga Bulldogs prospect made two free throws in the final moments of the game. With a 78 percent career free-throw average, Thunder faithful believed that he was the right man for the moment, only for him to disappoint the home crowd.

Holmgren missed both of his attempts as the Nuggets scored a three-pointer to seal the deal. Despite having a pretty decent game, scoring 12 points and grabbing six rebounds, Holmgren’s night turned into a nightmare. While he was scrutinized by both fans and the media, Jalen Williams thinks otherwise.

“Like they would have been nice. But it’s like also at the same time, like that’s not why we win or lose the game, because like if they don’t make that three, you know we win the game. It’s like if I make like… I said before, if I make two free throws early, what’s the score of the game? There’s so many factors that factor into a game. That’s not why we lost the game, and obviously it s–ks and it’s good for character development. He’ll be better for it later down the road.” Williams suggested.

Chet Holmgren’s teammate suggested that it wasn’t just the two free throws that cost them the game. Instead, there were a lot of other things, such as Aaron Gordon’s three, and some other moments. Moreover, he pointed out that even though it’s not great, it will be massive for Holmgren’s overall development. He urged his teammate to change and use this failure as motivation to improve himself down the road. It’s not the first time a young player has succumbed to postseason pressure. And while it may not be the last for Holmgren, we hope that he comes back even stronger as he and the rest of the OKC team gear up for round two.