Shai Gilgeous-Alexander nets career-high 45 in Thunder's win - ESPN

OKLAHOMA CITY — After having the best scoring game of his pro career, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander didn't feel like it was that special of a night.

In the Oklahoma City Thunder's first game since losing Chet Holmgren for at least two months with a hip fracture, Gilgeous-Alexander poured in a career-high 45 points, nine assists and five steals to lift his club to a 134-126 win over the LA Clippers before 17,430 at Paycom Center.

«It didn't feel special,» Gilgeous-Alexander said of his 14th-career 40-point game. «It didn't feel like I did something I'd never done before. Just felt like another basketball game. I felt like I should have had more, missed some easy shots, but [that's] the game.»

Perhaps the career outing didn't feel extraordinary because Gilgeous-Alexander is fixated on a more important goal. After reaching the second round but losing to the Dallas Mavericks as the top seed in the Western Conference, Gilgeous-Alexander has been focused on getting the Thunder (9-2) and his young teammates better prepared for a deeper run in the playoffs.

«I don't say this to slight my teammates,» Gilgeous-Alexander explained. «But I feel like the end of our season last year in the playoffs, obviously for a lot of them, it was the first time in the playoffs and playing games that meaningful. And I don't want to say they weren't ready, but I feel like I could have equipped them better throughout the year in taking [certain] shots, getting to spots and being more comfortable in certain positions on the court, especially offensively.

»I feel like in the playoffs we were good defensively and offensively is why we lost. And part of my job is to make sure that my teammates are confident and are ready for big moments."

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