The cousins who will face off in the Western Conference Finals: “I am trying to take his head off”

Blood might be thicker than water, but it won’t mean much in the Western Conference Finals.

Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker are cousins – close enough even to call each other brothers. But when their teams tip off this week with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line, family loyalty gets benched.

Gilgeous-Alexander forgets family ties

“I am trying to take his head off for sure. Completely,” Gilgeous-Alexander joked, moments after stunning the Denver Nuggets for 35 points in a Game 7 blowout.

Both players have shared a basketball path since childhood, from Canadian courts to prep school to the NBA. Now, they meet on opposite sides of the biggest series of their careers.

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Gilgeous-Alexander, many people’s favorite for league MVP and top scorer, leads a Thunder squad looking to complete a statement season. Alexander-Walker, a defensive specialist off the bench, will almost certainly be asked to slow down his cousin – no easy task, but he’s looking forward to it.

“It’ll be very fun,” Shai said of facing Nickeil. “We’ve gone through every situation together. To compete against each other is even more special.”

NBA Conference finals schedule: Thunder vs Timberwolves

Minnesota Timberwolves (6) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (1)

Game 1 – May 20, 8:30 p.m. ET – at Thunder

Game 2 – May 22, 8:30 p.m. ET – at Thunder

Game 3 – May 24, 8:30 p.m. ET – at Timberwolves

Game 4 – May 26, 8:30 p.m. ET – at Timberwolves

Game 5* – May 28, 8:30 p.m. ET – at Thunder

Game 6* – May 30, 8:30 p.m. ET – at Timberwolves

Game 7* – June 1, 8:00 p.m. ET – at Thunder

*if necessary

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