OKLAHOMA CITY — Playing on the second night of a back-to-back, there was no rest for the weary as the Oklahoma City Thunder picked up an easy-flowing 139-77 blowout win over the Portland Trail Blazers.
The 62-point margin of victory is the largest in Thunder history. The win places OKC in a tie for first place in the Western Conference standings with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
“I thought we were able to build obviously a pretty good lead and I thought we played pretty well with the lead both ends of the floor,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said on the win. “Which we’ve had leads in the past — we’ve done that well, we’ve done that poorly at different times… I thought the guys did a great job there.”
After the Trail Blazers scored the opening five points, the Thunder quickly took control of the contest and ended the first frame with a 36-24 lead. It drastically grew in the second quarter with a 39-point effort and entered halftime with a controlling 75-39 lead.
As the Thunder led by 49 points midway through the third quarter, Daigneault elected to pull his starters and reward them with an extended rest. A luxury that especially benefits OKC amid this grueling stretch of the schedule.
A 43-point third quarter by OKC saw this game turn an average blowout loss into history as it entered the final frame with a 118-56 lead. The Thunder’s 62-point lead following the third quarter was larger than Portland’s total points at 56.
By the final buzzer, OKC collected the fifth-largest margin of victory in NBA history.
Against the Trail Blazers, the Thunder had arguably their best offensive outing yet this season. OKC scored a season-high in points, shot 57% from the field and went 14-of-35 (40%) from 3. It tallied a season-high 41 assists on 53 baskets.
“We’re not perfect on a given possession, but we got kinda a contagiousness around that right now and it’s making us very difficult to guard,” Daigneault said on their 41-assist night. “I think the guys are gaining confidence and momentum from that offensively.”
All 15 players for the Thunder suited up and played at least seven minutes in the lopsided win. This included all five starters having a plus-minus of plus-39 or better.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 31 points in 21 minutes. Josh Giddey collected his first triple-double of the season. Jalen Williams scored 21 points on 10 shots.
Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers struggled as they shot 28% from the field and 11-of-49 (22.4%) from 3. Only two players scored double-digit points — Scoot Henderson with 13 points and Anfernee Simons with 14 points.
A little over two years following their 73-point loss to the Memphis Grizzlies — the largest margin of defeat in NBA history — a 62-point win over the Trail Blazers gave Daigneault a chance to reflect on OKC’s growth since then.
“That (Grizzlies loss) was an important game for us. I thought we learned a lot of lessons from that game,” Daigneault said. “You learn that it’s one game… You learn the sun comes up the next day, you have practice the next day…
“Fear is something that is an emotion you feel in competition. That’s like your worst nightmare, that game. But the fear of it is worse than the reality of it. The reality is you lose the game, you taste your own blood…
“It built some good fortitude in the team and some good scars to the point where now it’s kinda a badge of honor.”
Let’s look at Thunder player grades.