The Oklahoma City Thunder were able to lose in entertaining fashion as the Cleveland Cavaliers manages to steal a road game with a 107-102 win. The Thunder led by as much as 18 points but the Cavaliers used a 15 point advantage in the second half to close this gap and complete the comeback.
The Cavaliers, who came into the game ranked third in the league in team defensive rating at 104.9, held the Thunder to 102 points. Now while the point total is low, I thought the Thunder shot the ball pretty efficiently against one of the best defensive teams in the NBA as they had a 43.4/ 37.0/ 90.9 shooting splits. The difference in the game came with turnovers, where the Thunder committed 15 compared to the Cavaliers’ seven total. This gave the Cavaliers four extra shot attempts and in a five-point loss, those extra possessions were extremely crucial.
For the Cavaliers, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley led the way. Garland finished with 27 points and 18 assists while Mobley finished with 20 points and five rebounds. Jarrett Allen also chipped in with a 13 point and 13 rebound double double.
Overall, this was a fun game that showed the Thunder were able to keep up with the most overachieving team in the league. The team has nothing to be ashamed about with its efforts and should not hang their head in losing an 18-point lead against the up and coming Cavaliers. With all that said, let’s take a look at player grades.