The Oklahoma City Thunder opened their season with a 116-104 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night at Frost Bank Center in what was their first meeting since Game 7 of last season’s Western Conference Finals.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 32 points, and his monstrous production was enough to get fans putting his name in the MVP conversation before the final buzzer.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Sets a Thunderous Pace on Opening Night Against San Antonio

Gilgeous-Alexander had his offensive bag on full display against the Spurs, shooting 13-of-27 from the field, including 3-of-7 from 3-point range, and making 3-of-4 free throws in 36 minutes. He added 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks.

One hoops fan looked well past opening night, remarking, “Shai might be in Curry-KD convos when this season over.”

Another NBA fan offered a simpler verdict: “He’s too good… he makes the game look easy.”

Others skipped the comparisons altogether, as one hoops fan declared, “Yeah bro, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the best in the world.”

The praise follows a postseason in which Gilgeous-Alexander’s shooting dipped from 55.3% in the regular season to 46.3% in the playoffs.

Another OKC fan went straight to the league’s top individual award: “Shai is three-peating MVP idc, voter fatigue isn’t stopping this.”

San Antonio never really settled into the game as the Thunder grabbed the first quarter 34-28 and took a 65-44 lead into halftime.

While the Spurs opened the second half on a 23-9 run to close the gap, Gilgeous-Alexander and Jared McCain answered in no time, combining for 25 points after the break.

McCain finished with 20 points off the bench on 6-of-8 shooting from deep.

In stark contrast to his rival’s 32-point night, Victor Wembanyama struggled in Tuesday’s rematch. The Spurs star finished with 12 points on 1-of-13 shooting and missed his first 12 shots, with one being an alley-oop effort blocked by Thunder rookie Aday Mara.

The Spurs’ run to open the second half came without a field goal from Wembanyama. The Frenchman’s only basket was an alley-oop from Fox late in the third quarter, and he went 0-for-4 from 3-point range with four turnovers.

Though Wembanyama still made his mark in other areas, finishing with 13 rebounds, 6 blocks and 3 assists, it was just not enough to keep his San Antonio side afloat against a dominant Thunder.

Stephon Castle led the Spurs with 24 points, Dylan Harper added 18, and Fox had 14. But the team shot 39% from the field in comparison to Oklahoma City’s 45%.

The Spurs, now 0-1, will get back on the drawing board before they host the Houston Rockets on Friday. Meanwhile, the Thunder and a red-hot Gilgeous-Alexander return home to host the Denver Nuggets on Thursday, October 22, at Paycom Center.