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A pair of former Kentucky Wildcats, who happen to be teammates on the Oklahoma City Thunder, had a historic night yesterday.
The Thunder took on the Kyrie Irving-less Brooklyn Nets. While Irving was out, the Nets did have former MVP Kevin Durant running the show, and he balled out, putting up 36 points and 11 rebounds.
As for Oklahoma City, they stood their own ground against one of the best teams in the East. The Thunder won by 13 points, and they did so by a combined 56 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Hamidou Diallo.
The Thunder duo did something that hadn’t been achieved since Durant and Russell Westbrook were running the show in OKC.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Hamidou Diallo are the first pair of Thunder teammates, both age 22 or younger, to each score 25 points in the same game since Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant in 2011. pic.twitter.com/byVPJ1W6OH
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 11, 2021
While this was just one game, the snippet showed exactly what every Wildcat fan knew — the two young guards and budding stars. SGA is the more prominent of the two players, and he’s transformed into a dominant force on both ends of the floor.
The 6-5 22-year-old is averaging a career-high 21.0 points per game. He’s averaging a career-high on field-goal percent, three-point percentage, and three-point field goals per game. SGA has been going off this season.
However, he’s not the only one making waves, as Diallo is also having a quiet yet impressive season. In 21.0 minutes per game, Diallo has almost doubled his scoring, increasing it from 6.9 points to 12.1. His most impressive feature has been his efficient shooting, as he’s shooting over 55% from the field, a mark that seems almost unsustainable for a shooting guard.
The Thunder traded former All-Star point guard Chris Paul this past offseason, and they’re still over .500. Their young core is outstanding, and they’re proving to be better than most thought.
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