Sunday night was a big night for Canada Basketball, and a big night for Hamilton, Ontario.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who grew up in the Steel City, rewrote the National Basketball Association record book after the Oklahoma City Thunder outlasted the Indiana Pacers 103-91 in Game 7 of the NBA finals.
Gilgeous-Alexander drained a game-high 29 points and dished out 12 assists in the victory.
The 26-year became just the fourth player in league history to win a regular season scoring title, averaging 32.7 points per game, win the regular season most valuable player award, win an NBA Championship and then be named Finals MVP.
The only three other players to accomplish that are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan and Shaquille O’Neal.
“It’s hard to believe that I’m part of that group. It’s hard to even fathom that I’m that type of basketball player sometimes,” said Gilgeous-Alexander.
“As a kid, you dream. Every kid dreams. But you don’t ever really know if it’s going to come true. I’m just glad and happy that my dreams have been able to come true. That’s a ‘thank you’ to everyone that’s been in my corner that helped me get there.”
Lost in the Gilgeous-Alexander historic performance were the three other Canadians on the court in the Finals.
Montreal’s Benedict Mathurin led the Pacers in Game 7 points with 24 and rebounds with 13. And that came off the bench.
Fellow Pacer, and Aurora native, Andrew Nembhard chipped in with 15 points and team-high six assists, while Luguentz Dort of Montreal had nine points, seven rebounds and was his usual tenacious defender for the Thunder.
“If you had asked me 10-15 years ago if I was going to experience what I’m experiencing now, I couldn’t have imagined it at all,” Dort said. “I had to believe in it, work on my game and trust the process.”
Gilgeous-Alexander was appreciative of his fellow Canadian teammate and knows the sky’s the limit for this young Oklahoma City team.
“It doesn’t feel real, so many hours, so many moments, so many emotions, so many nights of disbelief,” added Gilgeous-Alexander. “It’s crazy to know that we’re all here. But this group worked for it, this group put in the hours and we deserved this.”
“Our togetherness on and off the court, like how much fun we have, it made it so much easier. It made it feel like we were just kids playing basketball. It was so fun.
“We have a lot to grow, individually and as a group. I’m excited for the future of this team. This is a great start. I’m really excited for this team.”
After winning bronze at the 2023 FIBA World Cup with a thrilling overtime victory against the United States, and Sunday’s night to remember for Canada basketball, the future definitely looks bright for the red and white.
Rod Mawhood is a lifelong Niagara native who has had the pleasure of working in all three mediums – Radio, Print and TV – for over 20 years. His first announcing gig was with the then St. Catharines Stompers. Since then he’s worked in radio and TV in Toronto, and currently is the announcer for the Niagara IceDogs and Niagara River Lions.
Rod also covers the Buffalo Bills for FOX Sports and the Buffalo Sabres for NBC Sports.
