- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points for the Thunder, while his cousin, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, led the Timberwolves with 23 points in a Western Conference finals game.
- SGA nearly had a triple-double, while Alexander-Walker outscored Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards.
- The Thunder won 128-126, putting it one win away from the NBA Finals.
MINNEAPOLIS — A diamond-framed sports card holder hung from a chain around Vaughn Alexander’s neck.
Inside were two trading cards. One Shai Gilgeous-Alexander card, one Nickeil Alexander-Walker. Both depicted in their Team Canada jerseys. Either was visible depending on how the chain was flipped. Sometimes it was SGA’s turn to be forward facing. Other times, Nickeil got the shine.
And that’s exactly how Game 4 went, Gilgeous-Alexander and Alexander-Walker taking heroic turns in a Western Conference finals bout that doubled as a one-on-one, cousin vs. cousin duel.
“I’m just so proud of both of them,” Vaughn Alexander, SGA’s dad, told The Oklahoman, part of the USA TODAY NETWORK, after the Thunder’s 128-126 win Monday night in Minneapolis.
Gilgeous-Alexander dropped a game-high 40 points. Alexander-Walker had 23 to lead the Timberwolves.
The MVP vs. Minnesota’s man off the bench.
“He got the better of me sometimes, I got the better of him,” SGA said. “Stuff we’ve dreamt about for our whole lives and it’s crazy that it’s come to fruition.”
Siblings Vaughn and Nicole Alexander, Nickeil’s uncle and Shai’s aunt, sat courtside observing it all. Their kids who grew up together, who played countless games on the playground, were going back and forth in a conference finals clash.
“It feels like you’ve got to wake up and pinch yourself to make sure the dream’s not gonna be over,” Vaughn said. “But when you put so much hard work in, you know it’s not a dream.”
Vaughn, who helped raise nephew Nickeil, was as conflicted as his shimmering chain suggested.
“I’m cheering for both of them, I can’t lie,” Vaughn said. “I don’t care who wins, I just want them both to play well.”
They played well, all right. A career-playoff high in points for both.
Pushing the Thunder a win from the NBA Finals, Gilgeous-Alexander was a rebound shy of a triple double: 40 points (13-of-30), 10 assists, nine rebounds.
An exquisite SGA performance, but not as astonishing — given their respective standings in the league — as what his cousin accomplished.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s 23 points were seven more than Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards had. Alexander-Walker’s six assists tied Edwards for a team-best.
“Shai was Shai,” Vaughn said. “That’s who he is. That’s a cool, smooth operator. Nothing bothers him. The game’s always in slow motion for him. He’s always three or four steps ahead. He’s just that kid. And when the game’s on the line, you want the ball in his hands.”
And Nickeil?
“Same mentality,” Vaughn said. “Played like a boss today as well. Tried everything he could do for his team to win and fell a little bit short.”
In addition to draining timely 3s, it was Nickeil, not Jaden McDaniels, who got the SGA defensive assignment more times than not down the stretch.
“The night like he had tonight, he’s very capable of every night,” SGA said. “He’s a really good basketball player. Great feel, great skill. It’s only a matter of time before he blows (up).”
After the game, Gilgeous-Alexander walked to the baseline seats near the Timberwolves bench to embrace his dad and hug his aunt.
This matchup between cousins? What’s difficult to appreciate now will live on in family lore.
“When it’s all said and done,” SGA said, “we’ll definitely have plenty of stories about it.”
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com.