Shai Gilgeous-Alexander helps Thunder get another Round 1 sweep over Suns

Once again, Gilgeous-Alexander dissected the Suns at all four scoring levels. Throwing a rotation's worth of defenders at him, the Suns simply didn't possess the personnel to limit the walking 30-point bucket. Nobody in the NBA truly does. For the fourth and final time, he tore apart Phoenix's defense — which was proudly in the top-10 of defensive rating.

Gilgeous-Alexander bumper-car'd his way to the rim. He had several driving layups. And when that didn't happen, the reigning MVP drew plenty of contact. Looks like his whistle does translate to the NBA playoffs, after all. Almost as if he's impossible to guard one-on-one.

Not as frequently used tonight, Gilgeous-Alexander's jumper was deadly. At the mid-range and from the outside. He had 17 points in the first half to keep the Thunder ahead on the scoreboard. He had another 14 points in the second half to put the final touches on another routine Round 1 sweep.

Straight-up NBA superstar stuff. Gilgeous-Alexander made Booker look pedestrian in comparison. You're seeing an all-time great at the peak of his powers. He's turned Round 1 matchups into boring sweeps over the last three years. You're just not supposed to see that in the NBA playoffs. It's the complete opposite of what this chaotic environment is supposed to be about.

"It is a really good feeling. Just for confidence-wise, as a group, it's good to get the playoff run started off that way.It's just important to get out on a good foot. You never know what can happen," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Usually, the later you go, the better the team. So the series doesn't get like that. You want to give yourself as many days as you can rest and the more you can sweep, the better off and the more days you have to rest. So it's pretty important."

And just like that, Dillon Brooks' saga with the Thunder came to a forgettable end. I won't lie, he was one of the more fun opposing players OKC had to face in a playoff series. And it's had plenty over the years. He was the Suns' best player throughout the four-game series. He tried his best to single-handedly muddy things up, but the talent gap was too much. Still, Gilgeous-Alexander showed all love for his efforts after the Round 1 sweep.

"It was just great respect. Obviously, knowing Dillon, he's a great competitor and great guy," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "No matter what people say about him, he's a really good guy. You get to know him. All that villain stuff doesn't faze me. I know exactly who Dillon is. He had a helluva series. Keep getting better. I'm proud of him."

Now, the Thunder wait. Odds are, they'll face the Los Angeles Lakers in Round 2. They have a 3-1 series lead over the Houston Rockets. If that's the case, LeBron James and potentially Luka Doncic will get a chance to rewrite their year. OKC had its number. But we know the regular season is a different beast compared to the NBA playoffs. Gilgeous-Alexander talked about either pathway.

"It'll either be Lakers or Houston. They each impose their challenges. Houston is more defensive. The Lakers a little more offensive. But they're both really good teams," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "To make it out of that series, you have to do a lot of things right. So we won't take them lightly."

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander helps Thunder get another Round 1 sweep over Suns