The Oklahoma City Thunder got their 2022-23 season underway in Minnesota on Wednesday, as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander returned to the lineup for the first time this season after missing training camp and preseason with a grade 2 MCL sprain. Mark Daigneault rolled out a surprising starting lineup that featured the star guard with Lu Dort, Josh Giddey, Kenrich Williams, and Aleksej Pokusevski to match up with the new-look Wolves led by Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert.
Despite a 15-plus-point second-half comeback, the Thunder fell 115-108 as star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scores 32 points while shooting 52 percent from the floor, two blocks, three steals, five assists, and six rebounds in 36 minutes of work.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had been dealing with an MCL sprain leading up to the opener but he looked absolutely fantastic on Wednesday night. The well-rounded stat line is reminiscent of much of what we saw from the 24-year-old last year, when he emerged as a top-20 fantasy asset at times. SGA has a real chance to produce at that level again or better this season, as the true focal point of the Thunder offense.