NBA Opening Night: MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander key in first victory for Oklahoma after two overtimes

Oklahoma City Thunder and Golden State Warriors win the first NBA games of the season.
Text: Javier Escribano
Published 2025-10-22

NBA started last night, with the Opening Night that featured the current champions, Oklahoma City Thunder, against Houston Rockets, and the popular Los Angeles Lakers vs. Golden State Warriors. Thunder won their first match, but it wasn't easy: there were two overtimes in a 125-124 match, where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, MVP of last season, proved decisive: the point guard scored the equalising points to force first overtime, and later forced Houston's Kevin Durant a foul transformed in the 125-124 2.3 seconds before the end.

Gilgeous-Alexander, however, only became truly impactful at the end of the match. He played 47 minutes, more than anyone, and scored 35 points, but 24 of them came in the fourth quarter and the overtime.

Individual talent is not enough, as proven in the other match: after a series of pre-season defeats, Los Angeles Lakers lost 109-119 to Golden State Warriors, even with Luka Doncic scoring 43 points, but alone in a team still without injured LeBron James. Meanwhile, in the San Francisco team, Jimmy Butler III and Stephen Curry shared the job of lifting the team to victory.

Are you interested in NBA? Remember that this year, some games will be broadcast live on Amazon Prime Video at no additional cost.

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