Chet Holmgren is way too hard to stop despite being hurt.
The Oklahoma City Thunder has obtained its third straight win against the Atlanta Hawks with 117-100 as Holmgren took charge, although sustaining a hand injury in the second quarter.
The 7-foot-1 exited to the locker room as he attempted to block a dunk, but ended up hurting his hand.
Aside from the apparent hurt, Holmgren was listed as questionable on the pregame report due to his back soreness, but still managed to drop a season-high 31 points and grab 12 rebounds, shooting 8-for-12 from the floor.
There were no reports after the game regarding his hand injury.
“There’s still room for us to be better,” Holmgren said. “We can go out there and get it done and that’s what we did.”
Meanwhile, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also contributed 30 points, five assists, and four rebounds, having been consistently on a hot streak after scoring 55 and 35 points in his previous two games.
“He’s in character right now,” he said of Gilgeous-Alexander. “It’s a credit to the work he does. He doesn’t ease his way into the season. He’s ready to go on night one and for all 82 (games).
“He’s really starting to manipulate the game as a playmaker. The scoring has been loud but some of the passes he has made and the reads he has made against the different coverages he has seen in these first few games have been really good.”
The Thunder started with a statement by being the defending champion and having the reigning Most Valuable Player, as well as becoming the first NBA team to begin a season with two double-overtime games.
