The Oklahoma City Thunder clinched their place in the Western Conference finals on Sunday after defeating the Denver Nuggets in a blowout Game 7, 125–93.
The Thunder are slated to face the Minnesota Timberwolves in the conference finals, meaning star point guard and MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will be playing against a member of his own family.
Gilgeous-Alexander is the cousin of Timberwolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and he gave a candid response when asked for his thoughts on facing off against a member of his family in the upcoming series.
"It'll be very fun," Gilgeous-Alexander said during his postgame presser after Sunday's series-clinching win, via Brandon Rahber of Daily Thunder. "It's hard to even explain. If you know how close we are, he's like my second brother. We've been through every stage of life together... It's very special.
"But I’m gonna try to take his head off for sure," Gilgeous-Alexander added.
Both Gilgeous-Alexander and Alexander-Walker grew up in the Toronto area, and they were even teammates at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy. They walked separate paths when it came time for college, as Gilgeous-Alexander took his talents to Kentucky while Alexander-Walker played at Virginia Tech. Gilgeous-Alexander was eventually selected with the No. 11 pick in the 2018 draft, while Alexander-Walker was the No. 17 pick in 2019.
Now, the two will cross paths once again, and it's hard to imagine a bigger stage for them to face off in than the Western Conference finals.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Made Clear How He'll Approach Playoff Showdown With Cousin.
