Muscling his way through Chet Holmgren, Victor Wembanyama jammed it in and felt himself afterward with a staredown. On the ensuing possession, Holmgren was called for a foul after shoving Wembanyama to set a screen.
There were moments of excitement between the two seven-foot rookies that seldom showed in their last matchup. But in terms of the actual score, it was fitting the drama between the two only surfaced in garbage time.
The Oklahoma City Thunder dominated the lowly San Antonio Spurs in a 140-114 win. The outcome of this one was never really in question. It capped off a sweep of a home-and-road back-to-back for OKC.
“I thought it was a really good offensive night for us,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said on the win. “We obviously shot the ball very well from three, which always makes it look a little better but the attacks were pretty sound… Found the best shot on a lot of possessions. I just thought we stayed in a very team rhythm tonight, which is great.”
The Thunder built a 35-28 lead following the first quarter. OKC added to its lead in the second frame and entered halftime with a 63-52 advantage.
A 37-point third quarter put this game to bed as the Thunder entered the final frame with a 100-76 lead. With the game essentially decided, Wembanyama and Holmgren exchanged jabs at each other before they were eventually pulled out of the lopsided contest.
“All credit to Vic,” Holmgren said. “Obviously, a great player, very, very talented — even at an early stage in his career. But I can’t let that matchup take away from what the job was tonight and that was trying to win a basketball game. Thunder vs. Spurs.”
The Thunder had arguably their best offensive outing yet. OKC scored a season-high 140 points, shot 56% from the field and 18-of-40 (45%) from 3. OKC dished out 36 assists on 54 baskets.
It was a productive night for OKC’s trio — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 32 points and 10 assists in three quarters. Jalen Williams had 13 points and seven assists. Holmgren had 17 points and three blocks.
Off the bench, Aaron Wiggins scored 22 points and Cason Wallace totaled 13 points. The Thunder had an eye-popping 64 points from the bench.
“I really liked how much we trusted each other,” Holmgren said. “That ball was really moving around — especially out there in that second unit… Trusted the offense and we did a great job at that all 48 minutes. Whoever was out there on the floor, all five guys trusted each other.”
Meanwhile, the Spurs shot 50% from the field and went 9-of-32 (28.1%) from 3. San Antonio dished out 30 assists on 43 baskets. A pair of 20-point scorers led the Spurs.
Wembanyama totaled 24 points on 9-of-18 shooting, 12 rebounds, four blocks and four assists. Devin Vessell had 21 points, seven assists and five rebounds.
“Just like any other talented player, they’re gonna get their stuff into the game,” Daigneault said on Wembanyama. “I thought we did a good job of being physical with him. We put him in a crowd. We turned him over a couple of times.
“I thought we made the game difficult. He never really operated in free space a ton and that was the key because they were really trying to pump the ball to him and play through him.”
Beyond the Chet vs. Wemby main event, the Thunder did an excellent job of overwhelming the Spurs. The talent difference between both squads was evident as the game progressed.
It was a nice, easy win for the Thunder that provided some sparks between the two Rookie of the Year favorites. After struggling with the Portland Trail Blazers, this was a nice return to form for OKC on how it usually handles the basement dwellers of the league.
“Great job answering the bell tonight by the team,” Daigneault said. “Just great mental toughness. Great discipline. Great togetherness. We’re able to sustain that. I thought we had great endurance tonight.”
Let’s look at Thunder player grades.