The Oklahoma City Thunder’s energy and effort matched that of the typical Monday for the average person.
There was not enough of it and it felt as though the Thunder were going through the motions to an inevitable road loss against a good Atlanta Hawks squad.
That especially felt like the case when the Hawks opened a 14-point lead in the third quarter. The Hawks opened the second half on a 14-5 run in the opening five minutes, and it felt like it was only a matter of time before they started to create distance between them and the Thunder.
At that point, it felt like the Thunder would succumb to their case of the Mondays.
Instead, the Thunder finished on a 62-41 run to earn a 121-114 win. The win extended their winning streak to three games.
A massive fourth quarter was responsible for the road win for the Thunder. The opening possessions set the mood for the Thunder as they outscored the Hawks 37-26 in the final 12 minutes.
What makes their fourth quarter even more impressive is the fact that the Thunder did it without their best player for seven minutes.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who finished with a mundane 35 points, did not check into the fourth quarter until the 4:46 mark. After leaving the floor trailing the Hawks by four points, Gilgeous-Alexander returned with a three-point lead.
An unreal seven-point swing was led by Josh Giddey and the bench unit. After struggling in the first half, Giddey’s strong second half contributed to the Thunder’s win.
For the Hawks, they were led by their starting backcourt. After a quiet first half, Trae Young finished with 23 points on 6-of-19 shooting and 10 assists. Dejounte Murray scored 24 points on 10-of-21 shooting.
After a strong first half, Bogdan Bogdanovic had a quiet second half. Overall, Bogdanovic scored 17 points and went 5-of-10 from three. Clint Capela added 14 points and 16 rebounds.
Let’s take a look at Thunder player grades from this seven-point win.