Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Michael Jordan Imitation Draws Fan Backlash, as Canada Narrowly Escapes vs Spain in Paris

The Canadians have topped Group A after a narrow win against Spain in the final Preliminary game. Led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the squad has aced the group stage, but not without a scare. Canada dominated the first half against Spain, going up by 11 at halftime. In the second half though, Spain outscored the Canadians, 47-39, but they couldn’t overcome the 11-point deficit. The MVP candidate, SGA led the team with 20 points and 3 rebounds, followed by Andrew Nembhard, who scored 18 points, and two triples of his own.

During one of the transition possessions, Shai had his tongue out while going for the wide-open slam, aka Michael Jordan. He was probably having fun but the fans were not so happy about it, mostly because of the narrow escape that Canada had. A narrow win sealed the first seed for Canada.

Having gone past Australia and Greece by a margin of 10 and 7 points respectively, Canada finished the group stage with a 3-0 record, while the rest of the teams finished with a record of 1-2 each. There were talks before the start of the Olympics that Group A was going to be the ‘group of death’, and for the most part, it seemed like it, given how close the games turned out to be. Greece, another team in Group A, might be one of the teams to qualify despite finishing third, but their qualification depends on the other results.

Coming back to the Canadians, they do have a lot of expectations to fulfill in the Olympics this year. Apart from Team USA, Canada has the most NBA players on their roster. Jamal Murray, who hasn’t been much consistent, is trying to find his rhythm. Whereas, Dillon Brooks has done a great job handling both ends of the floor. RJ Barrett, the scoring leader has done most of the work offensively, shooting efficiently from the field as well as from the distance. But it was SGA, who was the highlight of the game against Spain.

Fans react to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Michael Jordan celebration

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder to the first seed after years. While they did fall short in the postseason, SGA’s performance was not neglected. His last two seasons have spoken volumes, as he still eyes his first MVP award. The 26-year-old finished second in the MVP voting, however, it is safe to say that the award is coming his way if he continues to put up similar numbers. But, his NBA charm seemed to be overshadowed by his MJ antics today, as fans did not hesitate to criticize his in-game celebration.

“Bro is not MJ,” wrote a fan, clearly not impressed by the celebration. SGA hasn’t been as consistent in the Olympics as he would have liked to be, but his MVP candidature in the NBA did draw comparisons to MJ in the regular season. He’s been averaging over 30 points per game in the last two seasons. Not only that, but Shai has been a mid-range threat like MJ, shooting over 55% inside the arc.

Shai, alongside Luka Doncic, was one of the favorites to win the MVP award. But one netizen reckons SGA is the “Most overrated player currently.” Well, it might not be so. Yes, there were a lot of expectations from him coming into the Olympics. But then again, SGA and Barrett have been leading the team on both ends of the floor. The good thing is their performance compensates for Jamal Murray who is struggling.

Fans have been eagerly anticipating a Canada versus USA matchup in the Olympic playoffs. One fan believes that Shai “Won’t near move like that against the USA”. It certainly will be an interesting matchup and may just be the first time when fans will witness only NBA players on the Olympic hardwood. The player who finished second in the MVP against the NBA veterans will be something to look out for.

An X user was not convinced of Canada’s 3-0 record at the group stage. With chances rife that the Canadians might face Team USA in the Olympic playoffs, the fan pointed that out, as he wrote, “It’s all fun and games until you have to play the US”. Team USA did face Canada during their exhibition games and went past them quite smoothly. However, it might not be so easy in the Olympic playoffs.

Another fan pointed out the margin of Canada’s narrow win against Spain. The Canadians had the game from the start, but Spain bounced back hard in the second-half fight, keeping their hopes alive and reducing the margin of their defeat quite significantly at the end. “Only up by 8 to Spain,” a fan wrote, while Spain was narrowing down the deficit in the second half.

Canada, Team USA, France, Australia, and Germany are the only teams so far that have qualified for the Olympic playoffs. The extensive competition system will list the teams according to their ranks following which they’ll be sorted in Pots. Once the Pots are arranged, they will only ensure the most competitive matchups in the playoffs. It will be interesting to see how far the Canadians manage to make a run.

What are your thoughts on Team Canada? Do you think Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been underperforming? Let us know in the comments.

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