Tag: Josh Giddey

Thunder fall to Jazz in closing minutes; Dort scores 27

The Thunder didn’t have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. They started three rookies. They almost beat the Jazz.

Oklahoma City Thunder wing Lu Dort had already beat Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert at the rim. He attacked again in the final minute with OKC down four. This time, the reigning defensive player of the year made the stop.

The Jazz held off a gutsy Thunder performance to give OKC a 110-104 loss in a game without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Even without their star, OKC led by four points in the final in the final frame before Utah finally came through.

The Thunder have had some rough third quarters, and this one started slowly, with a 14-4 Jazz run. A defensive stand by Darius Bazley led to a scoring run by OKC.

Bazley got up to block Gobert at the rim. It may go down as one of OKC’s plays of the year.

Immediately after the block, the Thunder went on an 8-2 run to level out the score. No team would be able to get a true upper hand again.

The Thunder put on a good performance with head coach Mark Daigneault back at the helm. He missed the road trip for the birth of his child.

What makes it more impressive is that three rookies were in the starting lineup.

Aaron Wiggins got the start in place of Gilgeous-Alexander. The No. 55 pick in the draft only attempted one field goal in 26 minutes, finishing with one point and three rebounds.

Jeremiah Robinson-Earl had a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds and added four assists. He sank three of the four 3s he attempted.

Josh Giddey stole the show. He flirted with a triple-double, posting 19 points, seven rebounds and eight assists. He looked great in the closing minutes of the close game, draining a clutch 3 and playing above his years.

And Dort, who knows a thing or two about scoring explosions against the Jazz, finished with 27 points and five made 3s.

The Thunder shot above 41% from 3 while Utah just 31.9%, a rather shocking development that played a major role in how close the game was. But Gobert’s presence — 15 points, 17 rebounds, five blocks — was too much for the OKC back line. Jordan Clarkson came up huge off the bench with a team-high 20 points.

It’s yet another game that the Thunder players can walk away from with their head held high and the management group happy that they played close but took a step closer to the bottom of the standings.

All that mixed together – good defense, good 3-point shooting, good play from rookies, and a close game against one of the top teams in the league, all without Gilgeous-Alexander, gives the team and fans something to be thankful of with Thanksgiving officially underway.

Takeaways: Thunder contest Hawks but fall without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Josh Giddey took the reins as the OKC Thunder were without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, but the Atlanta Hawks took the win.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hasn’t looked like himself lately. Sure, he’s getting to the rim and has been hitting some tough shots, but a lot of his misses have been just that: misses. Misses on the shot itself and misses on the idea of even taking the shot.

After four straight games with less than 20 points and shooting 27.4% from the field, the Oklahoma City Thunder star guard was out against the Atlanta Hawks with a right ankle sprain. It was his first missed game of the season after starting 16 in a row, including five in the seven days from Nov. 14-20. By not playing on Monday, he gets three days in a row without games before the Thunder play the Utah Jazz on Wednesday.

Last season, the Thunder fell apart immediately when Gilgeous-Alexander took the bench for the second half of the season. On Monday, they maintained composure and competed well against the Hawks in the first half, trailing by six at halftime before falling apart in the third quarter and not having enough juice in the fourth. OKC suffered a 113-101 defeat to end its road trip 0-3.

It was a loss, but it wasn’t a loss like those in the second half of last season. There were some promising signs, starting with rookie Josh Giddey.

“Although we didn’t win, I think I can speak for other guys as well, the direction we’re headed is positive,” the 19-year-old said.

Let’s take a look at some positives, some negatives, and some overall reactions to the game:

Takeaways: Giddey sinks 3s but Thunder unable to overcome large Celtics lead

Thunder rookie Josh Giddey led a strong 3-point shooting effort, but OKC couldn’t overcome an early deficit to the Celtics.

For the second night in a row, the Oklahoma City Thunder found themselves down 20. For the second night in a row, they would not go down quietly.

Effort alone doesn’t win games, but consistent effort certainly puts them in position that they wouldn’t be otherwise. It happened Friday against the Milwaukee Bucks and again on Saturday in the 111-105 loss to the Boston Celtics.

Oklahoma City trailed by 25 more than halfway through the third quarter, but cut the deficit to 15 by the end of the frame. They cut that in half again, getting it down to eight with about 2:30 to play, and then to four with 11 seconds left. It was too late and Boston closed them out.

“These guys, you put something on their plate, they’re going to eat. It’s next man up,” said acting head coach Dave Bliss.

It was OKC’s second game in two nights and fifth in the last seven days. It’s been a daunting stretch. A loss isn’t something to celebrate, but the Thunder have shown they won’t give in, which is a promising sign, particularly with the circumstances of the schedule and Mark Daigneault’s absence on this road trip while his wife is due to give birth.

The Thunder fall to 6-10 on the season. Here are takeaways from the game:

Thunder grades: Lu Dort goes off for 34 points in OKC win over Rockets

Lu Dort’s offense is no fluke as the OKC Thunder took down the Houston Rockets.

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s 101-89 victory over the Houston Rockets was a statement in more ways than one:

First, Lu Dort’s offensive outburst as of late is not merely a fluke.

Second, the Thunder’s intensity is much different when they’re losing and mounting comebacks than when they’re winning and coasting the clock.

Third, and most importantly: The Thunder are above the bottom tier of the NBA.

Now, that’s a rather anti-climactic statement, but it’s a meaningful one. The Thunder aren’t good enough to be falling by any “trap” games this season, but this had the makings of one: Oklahoma City recently won four games in a row. The Rockets are a one-win team but have talent at the center position that OKC lacks. Houston actually beat the Thunder just a few weeks ago.

But Oklahoma City didn’t fall for it. They put on the clamps early, taking a 12-point lead into halftime, then kept up the pressure, leading by 16 at the end of the third.

It was only then that the Rockets made their move, going on a run to cut the deficit as low as five. At that point, Dort came alive.

The Thunder would not have won the game without their defensive stopper’s offense. In the first 5:06 of the game, Dort scored nine points. In the final 5:06 of the game, Dort scored nine points.

As much as the first nine points kickstarted the Thunder — Dort had nine of the team’s first 11 points — the final nine secured the victory. After Houston cut the lead to five, Dort scored five straight points, starting with a 3-pointer made with 5:06 to play and then a pair of free throws. The Rockets pushed and pushed, but he wouldn’t let them take.

Dort finished with a season-high 34 points on 14-for-22 shooting, made four 3-pointers and grabbed eight rebounds. He has now scored 20 points or more in five games in a row, three of which were Thunder wins.

And those wins are evidence enough: When debating over the worst team in the league, the Thunder cannot be in that conversation. They have defeated the Rockets and New Orleans Pelicans, both of whom are in that conversation. They beat the San Antonio Spurs, who have the third-worst record in the West and the same number of wins as the Orlando Magic and Detroit Pistons in the East.

Those are the bottom five and OKC is unquestionably above them. That’s nothing to gloat about at all; it’s a simple truth. After it was assumed the Thunder would be a bottom-three team in the league, they are, for the second year in a row, too good to outright tank.

It’s not worth celebrating, but “ringz culture” in the NBA has obfuscated the fact that fans are allowed to be happy when their team is unexpectedly good or unexpectedly fun. Feel free to be happy that Oklahoma City only spent about half a season as the worst team in the league. They have multiple good, fun players this time around.

Moving onto the Thunder’s grades for the Wednesday game. Dort gets an A-plus. Here are more:

Rookie Wire Power Rankings: The long-awaited arrival of the MotorCade

Rookie Wire takes a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2021-22 season.

No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham has put a slow start to the season in the rear-view mirror and has arrived in a big way over the last two weeks with the Detroit Pistons.

Of course, Cunningham missed the first four games of the regular season but finally debuted with the Pistons on Oct. 30. He endured a rather slow start on offense, but has seemingly knocked off the rust and is beginning to show why he was the top pick in the NBA draft.

With the arrival of Cunningham, the rookie class received a big boost as it has started off the season with several notable performances. Scottie Barnes and Evan Mobley continue to dazzle, while others have stepped up with their respective teams.

To make sense of it all, we took a look at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the latest edition of the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but, rather, to illustrate the best players week to week.

Rockets at Thunder: Wednesday’s stream, lineups, injury reports and broadcast info

When the Rockets and Thunder last met on Oct. 22, Houston won by 33 points. Since then, Houston is 0-12 and Oklahoma City is 5-6.

In a matchup of two young teams on fairly similar rebuilding timelines, the Rockets easily defeated the Thunder by 33 points during their previous meeting on Friday, Oct. 22 in Houston. Since then, however, the fortunes of both franchises have changed in a dramatic way leading into Wednesday’s rematch in Oklahoma City.

The Thunder are 5-6 since that first game, with four wins in their last six contests. Meanwhile, the Rockets are 0-12 since, and they’ve become increasingly uncompetitive in recent days. Houston has been outscored by an average of 18.6 points during its last five losses, and by an average of 30 points in two losses this week to Phoenix and Memphis.

Will those trends continue, or might both teams be due for a slight course correction? Here’s when you should tune in to see it play out:

  • Date: Wednesday, Nov. 17
  • Time: 7 p.m. Central
  • TV Channel: AT&T SportsNet Southwest, NBA League Pass
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free in Houston markets)

Probable starting lineups

Houston Rockets (1-13)

  • Guard: Kevin Porter Jr.
  • Guard: Jalen Green
  • Forward: Jae’Sean Tate
  • Forward: Christian Wood
  • Center: Daniel Theis

Oklahoma City Thunder (5-8)

  • Guard: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
  • Guard: Josh Giddey
  • Forward: Luguentz Dort
  • Forward: Darius Bazley
  • Center: Jeremiah Robinson-Earl

Projected lineups are based on each team’s game notes. Both teams feature a rookie shooting guard who was taken very high in the first round of the 2021 NBA draft, with Houston starting Jalen Green (the No. 2 overall pick) and Oklahoma City countering with Josh Giddey (No. 6).

As for injuries, starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. left early in Houston’s Monday loss due to a left thigh contusion, which he first injured about 10 days earlier. As such, since it’s a re-aggravation, it shouldn’t come as a surprise if the Rockets are more conservative in their treatment protocol this time around. On the team’s injury report, he’s officially listed as questionable for Wednesday’s game at Oklahoma City.

The Thunder have no listed injuries on their status report.

This post originally appeared on Rockets Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Thunder grades: OKC defeats Pelicans to get third game in a row

With Lu Dort’s scoring, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 3rd quarter and strong performances from Josh Giddey and Mike Muscala, the Thunder have their first 3-game win streak since January.

The tables have turned for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Thunder know how to make comebacks. They know how to play with nothing to lose and to outwork the opponent. Their first three wins were all come-from-behind victories, one of which required a 26-point comeback.

On Wednesday against the New Orleans Pelicans, the Thunder got a taste of the other side. They learned a lesson — they are not good when they are on the right side of a blowout.

A 21-point Oklahoma City lead in the fourth quarter turned into a five-point game with less than two minutes left before Shai Gilgeous-Alexander created space and hit a jumper to stabilize the Thunder and push them to a 108-100 win.

Outside those jarring final 12 minutes, the Oklahoma City Thunder were simply the better team on Wednesday night. They shot better, defended better and were more physical.

They also avoided technical fouls. The score was close in the second quarter until the Pelicans, frustrated at the officiating, were dinged for five technical fouls. It culminated in an ejection for Josh Hart, and the Thunder took an eight-point lead into the half.

In the third quarter, New Orleans pulled back and took a lead. The Thunder answered with a 16-0 run to elevate the lead to an insurmountable number.

Josh Giddey had seven points, 12 rebounds and nine assists. Mike Muscala scored had 12 points and was a plus-17 in 13 minutes of play. Lu Dort scored a season-high 27. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander once again exploded in the third quarter.

As a result, the team picked up its first three-win streak since Jan. 6-10.

Here are grades from the Thunder’s performance:

Thunder report card: Player grades for OKC’s impressive win over the Lakers

Here are some player grades from the Oklahoma City Thunder’s win over the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Oklahoma City Thunder improved to 2-0 on the season against the Los Angeles Lakers with a come-from-behind victory at the Staples Center Thursday night. Just don’t ask about OKC’s other games, all of which they have lost.

Down 19 points in the second quarter, the Thunder stormed back to make it a four-point game at the half and tied it up with five to go in the third. They outscored the Lakers by 12 points in the fourth quarter, thanks to some gutsy shots from starlet Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and center Mike Muscala in the final minutes.

The Thunder struggled with some shot-making in the first half, hitting just 28.6% of their three-point attempts in the opening two quarters. They cleaned that up a bit in the second half, though, hitting 48.8% from the floor and 42.1% from deep.

They also got a bit of help from an Anthony Davis thumb injury at the tail end of the first half. He had just 11 second-half points, leaving most of the offensive duties to the mostly efficient Russell Westbrook and always-smooth Carmelo Anthony as the Lakers were without LeBron James once again.

The Thunder got some rock-solid performances from their young squad against the oldest team in the NBA once again, so here are some player grades from their win.

NBA power rankings: Thunder at the bottom of the league

The Thunder are at the bottom of the Rookie Wire’s power rankings, below the Magic, Rockets and Pelicans. What do you think?

(Most) fans know the Oklahoma City Thunder are tanking, but that doesn’t remove all the pain from seeing their spot in the latest NBA power rankings from the Rookie Wire.

The Thunder, 1-6, are at the bottom of the league.

The rankings were published before the team’s loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, but even that competitive game likely would not have changed their spot. Analyst Cody Taylor wrote:

“The Thunder picked up an impressive win over the Los Angeles Lakers last week, overcoming a 26-point deficit in the process, which equaled the largest in team history. They played the Golden State Warriors tough one game and then lost to them later in the week. Josh Giddey has been fun to watch, though.”

Taylor and the Rookie Wire have been fans of Giddey so far in this young season, ranking him sixth in the weekly rookie rankings.

That was the only positive written about the Thunder, who were ranked one spot below the similarly tanking Orlando Magic, two behind the Houston Rockets and three below the Zion Williamson-less New Orleans Pelicans.

Oklahoma City’s next game is scheduled for Thursday against the Los Angeles Lakers at 9:30 Central Time. The first game between the two, which took place on Oct. 27, remains the Thunder’s only win of the season so far.

Giddey ranked in Rookie Wire’s rankings; ‘worth a watch’ on League Pass

Josh Giddey’s placement in the Rookie Wire’s first rookie rankings of the season is fitting, given his draft position.

Each week, the Rookie Wire releases a ranking of rookies based on week-to-week play. Oklahoma City Thunder guard/wing Josh Giddey made an appearance in the site’s first ranking of the season.

Over the week, Giddey was the sixth-best rookie in the NBA, from the vantage point of analyst Cody Taylor.

That’s fitting, given as where Giddey was selected in the NBA draft.

The rookie leader in assists and assists per game has impressed so far during this young season.

“The Thunder may not win very many games this season but the play of Giddey, which can be electric at times, is certainly worth a watch on League Pass.”

Giddey has a double-double to his name, a different 10-rebound game and was a primary ball-handler and creator during the fourth quarter in the close loss to the Clippers.

“He has also shown that he can play late in games and recently had a strong fourth-quarter effort in a close contest versus the Los Angeles Clippers.”

Through seven games, all starts, Giddey is averaging 11.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game.

“His willingness to get his teammates involved with his flashy passing makes him one of the most entertaining rookies this season.”

Fellow Thunder rookie Jeremiah Robinson-Earl did not make the Rookie Wire’s top-10 list. Tre Mann, who was sent to the G League, was also unsurprisingly not on the list.