Team USA is still hurting over its shocking finish in the FIBA World Cup.
It lost in the semifinal round to Germany in the final seconds, 113-111, which denied it a shot at the gold medal. It ended up playing Canada for the bronze medal, only to lose again, this time in overtime, 127-118. As a result, it returned home empty-handed.
One of the players who hurt the United States the most in the bronze medal game was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who dropped 31 points while adding 12 assists.
Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves couldn’t help giving the Oklahoma City Thunder guard props following the game.
Via Yahoo Sports:
“He kills everybody in the league,” Reaves said. “He’s one day probably going to be in the race for MVP.”
This past NBA season, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 31.4 points, which was fourth in the league, and 5.5 assists a game while shooting 51% from the field. Even though his build resembles a popsicle stick at 6-foot-6 and 180 pounds, he averaged 10.9 free-throw attempts a game and converted 90.5% of his attempts at the charity stripe.
Although he is somewhat underrated, he will clearly be a force for many years to come.