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• Chris Paul saved the Thunder's season with two huge three-pointers in the final minutes of Game 6 against the Houston Rockets.
• Paul's back-to-back threes tied the game, and the Thunder would win 104-100 to force a Game 7 scheduled for Wednesday.
• After Paul hit the second his two threes, he slapped defender Robert Covington on the butt while jogging back up the court.
• Paul said that the butt slap was "Gamesmanship. It's all respect. Love," after the game.
• Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Chris Paul saved the Oklahoma City Thunder's season on Monday night with a brilliant performance in crunch time, scoring 15 points in the fourth quarter to force a Game 7 against the Houston Rockets.

Paul was sharp all night but went into another gear when his team needed him most, taking over to keep the Thunder in the game just as their shot a victory looked to be slipping away.

With just under four minutes remaining, the Thunder trailed 98-92 and were in desperate need of a bucket to keep pace with Houston's high-octane offense.

On back-to-back possessions, Paul took advantage of the space Robert Covington gave and spotted up to hit from three. Just a minute later, the game was tied.

—SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 1, 2020

While jogging back up the court from his game-saving triples, Paul gave his defender a light slap on the butt. "Nice try," it seemed to indicate.

—CJ Fogler #BlackLivesMatter (@cjzero) September 1, 2020

Paul and the Thunder would go on to win, 104-100. After the game, Paul said his butt slap was made out of respect.

"Yeah, it was Robert Covington. Shout out to Tennessee State, HBCU," Paul said. "Gamesmanship. It's all respect. Love."

—Stadium Astro (@stadiumastro) September 1, 2020

Paul and the Thunder will face off against the Rockets again in Game 7 on Wednesday night with a spot in the Western Conference Semifinals on the line. If Paul can continue his stretch of clutch performances, the Thunder could wind up the surprise story of the NBA postseason.

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