NBA Notes: Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nets, Magic, Sean Sweeney

Thunder

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander apparently didn’t need much time to knock off the rust.

The reigning MVP made his preseason debut Wednesday and went 5-of-5 from the field, 3-of-3 from beyond the arc and 4-of-4 at the line in just 17 minutes during Oklahoma City’s 128-126 loss to Milwaukee.

He finished with 17 points, five assists, three rebounds and a block without committing a turnover.

As NBA on SI noted, the five assists were perhaps as notable as the perfect shooting night, particularly with defenses continuing to load up on Gilgeous-Alexander.

Again, preseason. But perfect is perfect.

Nets

Brooklyn couldn’t shoot straight last season. At least for one preseason game, that changed in a hurry, writes Ivan White on Nets on SI.

The Nets went 20-of-37 from 3-point range, or 54.1 percent, in a 124-90 win over the Hornets. That stands out after Brooklyn finished last season at just 34 percent from deep, worst in the NBA.

The Nets also took more than 46 percent of their shots from beyond the arc, roughly in line with their shot profile from last season.

Nobody should be making sweeping judgments after one October game, particularly against an undermanned Charlotte team. Still, if Brooklyn can keep launching at the same rate while simply making more of them, that would solve one fairly obvious problem.

Magic

The Magic may already be showing signs of what first-year coach Sean Sweeney wants offensively.

Orlando opened its preseason game against Memphis by running Spain pick-and-roll for Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane, creating an open corner 3-pointer for Wendell Carter Jr.

Then the Magic came right back and ran it again. Ryan Kaminski of NBA on SI pointed to the sequence as an early indication of how Orlando could use Wagner and Banchero as creators while taking advantage of Bane’s shooting and movement.

Sweeney previously summed up the spacing philosophy pretty simply.

“We would rather be too high, too wide, too far apart, too spaced,” he said.

It’s October, so nobody is unveiling the championship formula just yet. But after Orlando’s offensive issues last season, any sign of better spacing and easier shots is probably worth watching.