Even though the Oklahoma City Thunder have built up an indestructible 3-0 series lead over the Phoenix Suns, the latter will go down swinging. That's all you can really do at this juncture of the Round 1 matchup — as the reigning NBA champions have cruised to three straight double-digit wins to flex their muscles.
After Jalen Williams sustained a third hamstring strain in four months, some thought his absence would inject this David-Goliath playoff series with some excitement. Nope. All it did was give Shai Gilgeous-Alexander the runway to have one of his best postseason performances ever.
Gilgeous-Alexander was a one-man wrecking crew. He completely dissected the Suns' upper echelon defense. He had an unreal 42 points on 15-of-18 shooting and eight assists. Those types of numbers you see in the regular season. Not at this stage of the year.
The Thunder picked up a 121-109 Game 3 win over the Suns. They're now a win away from their third straight Round 1 sweep since Gilgeous-Alexander ascended into an MVP candidate. As one of the main characters of their one-sided beef, Dillon Brooks will go down with the ship — ala the band in the Titanic.
Funny enough, Brooks has been the Suns' best player. Which has played right into OKC's hands. He had 30 points in Game 2 and 33 points in Game 3. Against the league-best defense, he's been their only real source of offense as Devin Booker has been a no-show and Jalen Green remains inconsistent.
After Gilgeous-Alexander logged a career-best 42 points in a playoff game, Brooks said he'll match up with him one-on-one in Game 4. That's all they can really do at this point. Every other game plan has proven to be ineffective. And this one likely is, too.
"He's efficient," Brook said. "And I got him Game 4."
The Thunder are well on their way to a Round 2 advancement. And likely against the Los Angeles Lakers — who are also up 3-0 over the Houston Rockets. Until then, though, Brooks will have a couple of more days to bask in the national spotlight. He's added some flair to this otherwise boring matchup.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Dillon Brooks gives bold 8-word response about Shai Gilgeous-Alexander