WASHINGTON (AFP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren sparked unbeaten Oklahoma City to a 117-100 victory in Atlanta on Saturday, lifting the reigning National Basketball Association (NBA) champion Thunder to 3-0 on the season.

Holmgren scored 31 points and grabbed 12 rebounds while Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player and scoring champion, contributed 30 points, five assists and four rebounds for Oklahoma City.

“There’s still room for us to be better,” Holmgren said. “We can go out there and get it done and that’s what we did.”

Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 55 and 35 points in the first two wins, has shown growth beyond his scoring skills, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.

“He’s in character right now,” he said of Gilgeous-Alexander. 

“It’s a credit to the work he does. He doesn’t ease his way into the season. He’s ready to go on night one and for all 82 (games).”

“He’s really starting to manipulate the game as a playmaker. The scoring has been loud but some of the passes he has made and the reads he has made against the different coverages he has seen in these first few games have been really good.”