There are moments when greatness screams, and Game 5? It was one of them. With everything on the line, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander delivered a masterpiece with 31 points, 10 assists, 2 steals and 4 blocks. The kind of poise that belongs to legends. Oklahoma City beat Indiana 120–109 and took a 3–2 lead in the NBA Finals. But if you think SGA did just that? You might want to rethink that. Because boy, did that man make history, yet again, just like that!

Remember how he made a Finals record with 72 points in his first two games that even the legendary Michael Jordan couldn’t score in a Finals debut? Yeah. He now did one better. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander now holds the record for the most 30-point, 5-assist games in a single postseason (12), passing Michael Jordan (1990) and LeBron James (2018). Sure. No problem, read that again!

For a player making his Finals debut, this run is anything but ordinary. It’s a star turning the corner into something bigger… something iconic. This is the kind of run that carves names into walls. That shifts narratives. That reminds you why the game makes your chest tighten. Oklahoma City is now one win from the mountaintop, and their leader is walking with giants.

But Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wasn’t supposed to be here this fast. Not when OKC was rebuilding—finishing 14th in the 2021 season, 10th a year later. Not when the roster was called “too young,” “too raw,” or “not ready for the moment.” But season by season, game by game, he turned whispers into war cries. “His mentality. Just a winner. Just has a ‘I’m gonna get it done’ mentality.” Jalen Williams said it best. This is the same kid who once started quietly in LA, got traded, and then bloomed into a franchise player in Oklahoma City, where the spotlight wasn’t supposed to find him.

Now? He’s rewriting playoff history alongside the very names that defined it and doing it his way. Calm, methodical, and… that’s right, unshakable. But he didn’t do it alone. He couldn’t.

Shai’s record-breaking run was never a solo act

If you ask Shai Gilgeous-Alexander about his historic run, chances are he’ll point right back to his teammates. In fact, before Game 5 even tipped off, he said it himself that Jalen Williams is “one of the biggest reasons why we are here.” And that couldn’t have been more obvious on Monday night. Williams finished with 40 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists, another game where he made life easier for SGA by constantly shifting the defense and attacking weak spots.

And then there’s Chet Holmgren, the big who called Caruso a GOAT, showed up like one himself. His stat line in Game 5? A quiet but crucial 9 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 blocks. He altered shots, cleaned the glass, and rolled hard after each screen he set—just enough to keep the Pacers’ bigs’ on their heels. It was foundational, to say the least.

Lu Dort? Well, he kept doing what he does best by making opposing stars miserable. While the box score shows 9 points and 2 steals, it doesn’t tell the whole story. His relentless on-ball defense helped wear down Tyrese Haliburton, especially in the second half. And that effort mattered. Even off the bench, Cason Wallace and Wiggins brought crucial energy. Mark Daigneault’s rotations were sharp, his sets dialed in, and his squad followed the blueprint like veterans. So much for biased officiating, no?

For the Pacers, the fairytale is cracking. Tyrese Haliburton, “the moment”, limped off with a scare in Game 5, only to return and fight through it. But even that gutty effort wasn’t enough. Indiana has now lost two straight in the biggest series of their season, and the momentum they once flaunted feels like it’s disappearing under the bright lights.

This was supposed to be Haliburton’s star-making stage, but it’s starting to look like a crash course in playoff heartbreak instead. A little early for the “face of the league” and the “Next Reggie Miller” conversation, maybe?

So yes, Shai made history. But his team? They built the platform for it. Because without the gravity of Williams, the spacing of Holmgren, the defense of Dort, and the coaching of Daigneault, who calls out his team when necessary, maybe that record-breaking night doesn’t happen. Maybe the Jordan-LeBron milestone still stands. Maybe the Thunder aren’t one game away from a banner. But the reality is that they are.

Game 6 looms. The Pacers will throw everything they have. But right now, Oklahoma City is powered by more than talent. They’re powered by belief. And at the center of it all stands Shai Gilgeous-Alexander… already a superstar, now writing something closer to a legacy. One more win. One more chapter. And one unforgettable run.