Why was Drake in OKC to see the Rockets beat the Thunder?

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander walked down the court with his hands folded on his head.

The Thunder star scored a season-high 39 points, but it wasn’t enough.

The Rockets beat the Thunder 114-110 on Wednesday night at Paycom Center. Houston didn’t take its first lead until there were five minutes left on the clock. The Rockets outscored the Thunder 41-29 in the fourth quarter.

Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished three points shy of his career high, shot 12-of-26 from the field and 14-of-16 from the foul line. It was the most field goal attempts and most free throw attempts of Gilgeous-Alexander’s career.

“When he’s in that mode, it’s really hard to stop him,” guard Ty Jerome said. “Damn near impossible to stop him with one defender.”

Gilgeous-Alexander’s 1-of-8 mark from 3-point range kept him from an even bigger night.

Thunder coach Mark Daigneault was most pleased with SGA’s free throw numbers.

“That's been something these last 10 games that’s been down, to be honest with you,” Daigneault said. “Early in the season we were I think top-five, top-10 in the league in getting to the line, and over these last 10 we haven’t gotten to the line as much.

“He’s a huge part of that,” Daigneault said of SGA.

Here are four more takeaways from the game:

'Being aggressive creates opportunity': How Thunder rookie Tre Mann can channel his Florida roots

The Jae’Sean Tate Game

Jae’Sean Tate howled so loud, his mouthguard flew out of his mouth.

Tate flexed and stared down the Thunder crowd after he swatted Jeremiah Robinson-Earl’s dunk attempt in the fourth quarter.

Tate had a monster game against the Thunder: a career-high 32 points with 10 rebounds, seven assists and five blocks.

Tate is the Rockets’ version of Luguentz Dort, both defensive bulldogs who have the ability to go off offensively. Oh, and by the way, both went undrafted and are on team-friendly contracts.

Tate, a four-year player at Ohio State, was averaging 11.4 points per game before Wednesday.

He’s a big reason why the Rockets have won four straight games.

Tate and second-year guard Armoni Brooks kept the shorthanded Rockets afloat.

No. 2 pick Jalen Green is injured, and Christian Wood and Kevin Porter Jr. were ruled out at halftime with injuries. Wood dominated the Thunder on Monday, but he was a non-factor in his nine minutes Wednesday.

'He sees everything': How Thunder rookie Josh Giddey is becoming one of the NBA's best passers already

Tre Mann starts

Rookie guard Tre Mann got his first NBA start and the Thunder’s first bucket Wednesday night.

Daigneault put Mann in the starting lineup in place of Josh Giddey, who was out with the flu. Thunder center Derrick Favors also has the flu.

Mann scored 11 points in his 32 minutes. He shot 2-of-7 from 3-point range. It was another dreadful 3-point shooting night for the Thunder (8-of-32).

Mann has bounced back and forth between the Thunder and the G League Blue, but he’s going to have a steady role, and probably a starting role, as long as Giddey is out.

More: Let's rank the Thunder's alternate jerseys again. You'll be surprised where the new City Edition fits in.

Drake attends Thunder-Rockets

Drake, the most famous rapper in the world, sat courtside in Oklahoma City for the second half Wednesday night.

Why?

Good question. It’s not like the Lakers or Nets were in town. Even then it still would have been shocking. According to the Thunder broadcast, Drake was in town to see a friend.

The Paycom Center crowd went crazy when Drake appeared on the big screen in the third quarter.

Gilgeous-Alexander and Dort, countrymen of Drake, greeted the rapper with hugs after the game.

Gilgeous-Alexander said he didn’t know Drake was in town.

Daigneault unfortunately didn’t get a chance to meet Drake.

“I don’t know Drake,” Daigneault said, “and Drake certainly doesn’t know who I am.”

OKC Thunder schedule: How to watch the Thunder in 2021-22 NBA season

Series finale

It’s Dec. 1, and the Thunder and Rockets have already finished their four-game season series.

Yes, four of the Thunder’s 21 games have come against Houston.

OKC went 1-3 in the series, which could pay off come lottery night. The Thunder and Rockets are likely to finish as the bottom two teams in the Western Conference.

The Rockets are on a four-game winning streak, and the Thunder is on a seven-game losing streak.

OKC (6-15) is a game behind Houston (5-16) for the third-worst record in the NBA. The bottom-three teams in the standings all have a 14% chance of landing the No. 1 pick.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Why was Drake at the Thunder vs. Rockets game in Oklahoma City?