Tag: Lu Dort

Player grades: SGA returns as Thunder snap losing streak with 126-117 win over Hawks

Player grades for the Thunder’s 126-117 win over the Hawks.

OKLAHOMA CITY — Quickly recovering from a crossover, Lu Dort blocked Trae Young’s 3-point attempt and jumpstarted a fastbreak that ended in a Shai Gilgeous-Alexander lob pass to Jalen Williams.

The two-play sequence electrified the Paycom Center crowd in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 126-117 win over the Atlanta Hawks. After a two-game losing skid, OKC collects a win in the penultimate contest of its six-game homestand.

“I thought it was a really, really good defensive game,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said about the win. “Good discipline of the good game and we stacked good possessions against a good team.”

This win marked the return of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who missed one game due to a sprained knee. In his return, he scored 30 points on 20 shots and played within the flow of the offense.

“I thought we played pretty good last game,” Gilgeous-Alexander said on his return. “Coming back to the flow, I just didn’t want to throw off the rhythm. I just tried to fit in with the group. Do what was necessary and pick my spots accordingly.”

OKC kept a healthy distance from Atlanta for most of the game. At halftime, it owned a 58-50 lead. After a lengthy review, Lu Dort closed out the first half by being fouled on a 3-point attempt and making all three free throws.

The third quarter was much of the same story as the first half as the Thunder’s 38-27 scoring advantage created a 19-point lead entering the final frame.

The Thunder led wire-to-wire with a lead as large as 19 points, but Atlanta made a run late in the game to threaten OKC’s potential win.

Thanks to a 40-point fourth quarter, the Hawks cut it to a 114-109 deficit in the final 1:55 of the game. It felt like the Thunder were starting to slip away from their game-long lead.

After that though, the Thunder finished off the win with a 12-8 run. The two-play defense-to-offense sequence mentioned earlier was the exclamation mark of that final run to close out the win.

In the nine-point win, the Thunder shot 47% from the field and went 14-of-36 (38.9%) from 3. On the free-throw line, OKC went 22-of-23.

Meanwhile, OKC limited the Hawks on offense. They shot 37% from the field and 14-of-42 (33.3%) from 3. Trae Young was limited to 22 points on 5-of-18 shooting, 11 assists and seven turnovers. Dejounte Murray led Atlanta with 29 points on 7-of-16 shooting.

“I thought there were a couple of plays where the decisions were difficult for him, which is something that you have to do is keep him on his toes,” Daigneault said about defending Young. “Don’t give him the same dose of the same defense over and over again because, obviously, he’s a savvy player.”

This was a solid, much-needed win for OKC. After the Golden State Warriors debacle and the weekend off to chew on it, a win against a quality opponent was a nice refresher.

Entering Monday, the Hawks were on a four-game winning streak with impressive road wins after starting the season 0-2. The return of Gilgeous-Alexander ignited the Thunder and propelled them to a 4-3 record on the young season.

Let’s look at Thunder player grades.

Player grades: Controversial ending causes Thunder to lose to Warriors, 141-139

Player grades for the Thunder’s 141-139 loss to the Warriors.

OKLAHOMA CITY — After a lengthy review, the officials announced the unfortunate news to the OKC faithful: An offensive basket interference call was overturned.

The packed Paycom Center quickly rained boos down on the court because the reversal meant the Golden State Warriors scored the game-winning basket. The SGA-less Oklahoma City Thunder lost their first in-season tournament game, 141-139.

The controversial final play spoiled an otherwise excellent night by the Thunder. They played without their best player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was out with a knee sprain.

So what exactly happened on the final play?

A Steph Curry floater was initially waved off as it looked like Draymond Green interfered with the basket. The call would’ve likely sent the high-scoring game into overtime.

Instead, the referees went to the monitor and had an extended review that eventually went against OKC’s favor. The offensive goaltending call was overturned as the referees explained Josh Giddey touched the net before Green touched the basket.

Oddly enough, the points were initially awarded to Green instead of Curry before that was corrected. After the game, Daigneault said the referees explained to him that while Green did touch the rim, it did not affect the play enough to call it an offensive goaltend.

“They said he touched the rim but not to the extent that it impacted the play,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said. “To be honest with you, I don’t really know how the rule’s written but that’s the explanation I got. … I’m assuming they got that right.”

So yeah, that’s a lot to digest. Several interpretations of the offensive goaltend rule have been posted all over social media, so it’s nearly impossible to make sense of that final possession.

Regardless of the reasoning, the Thunder showed out in a playoff-esque environment against one of the greatest teams in league history. It was a back-and-forth contest that saw 15 lead changes and 15 ties. Neither team led by more than nine points.

“It was a great game to be in for our team,” Daigneault said. “I thought it was a classic game where every possession mattered obviously right up until the end of the game. … It was a true 48-minute game, which is no place we’d rather be.”

OKC’s offense had its best showing of the season. It finished with 139 points on 50-of-83 (60.2%) shooting and 15-of-29 (51.7%) from 3. Playing with pace, the Thunder dished 26 assists and flexed its offensive firepower.

Chet Holmgren and Lu Dort made up for Gilgeous-Alexander’s absence. The duo combined for 53 points. Holmgren had 24 points on 7-of-9 shooting while Dort had 29 points and went 6-of-6 shooting from 3.

“It’s good to experience those types of games,” Dort said. “This team has had a lot of success in this league so it’s good to fight against those type of guys.

Meanwhile, the Warriors were led by Curry, who had 30 points on 9-of-15 shooting. Klay Thompson scored 18 points in the win. Green finished with 15 points, five rebounds and three assists.

Off the bench, Jonathan Kuminga scored 19 points, ex-Thunder Dario Saric had 20 points and Chris Paul dished 13 assists.

Golden State went 18-of-40 (45%) from 3 and dished 36 assists. It scored more than 30 points in every quarter and 141 points in regulation is elite offensive production.

“It was obviously a fun game to be a part of,” Daigneault said. “It was a really competitive game. … The teams that improve with these experiences are the ones that play their best basketball later in the year and the ones that grow over time and that’s the team we want to be.

“I think it’s important that this one stings. Obviously, you want to win but we got to put this one in its proper place.”

Let’s look at Thunder player grades.

Player grades: Thunder mount comeback in 108-105 win over Cavaliers

Player grades for the Thunder’s 108-105 win over the Cavaliers:

Pressuring Donovan Mitchell, the multi-time All-Star failed to cross halfcourt as he lost control of the ball for a game-sealing turnover.

Holding onto a three-point lead, the Oklahoma City Thunder escaped Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse with a stunning 108-105 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. It was only the second game of the season, but it felt much more.

“It just comes down to trusting each other and what we can do out there,” Chet Holmgren said following the win. “We did a great job of that down the stretch of the game. We just got to continue that throughout the season.”

The win borders robbery as the Thunder finished the game on a 15-3 run after it looked like Evan Mobley slammed in the game-clinching dunk. The dunk awarded the Cavaliers a 102-93 lead with 1:56 left.

Instead of the Thunder settling for defeat after a tough second half saw them struggle to buy a bucket, OKC hunkered down and came away with the improbable win.

“I’m not surprised, there (were) definitely glimpses of this in previous times,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said about OKC’s 2-0 start. “There’s a contagiousness to this. They got a collective confidence that’s pretty impressive for any team.”

A trailing Holmgren — who collected a franchise-rookie record seven blocks — hit the top-of-the-key 3 to tie the game at 102 apiece with 1:03 left. On the next OKC possession, Lu Dort — who finishes with 25 points — grabbed the ball and hit on a running floater to recapture the lead.

On the immediate possession, Dort showed off his value as one of the best perimeter defenders in the league when he forced the hot-scoring Mitchell to take a highly-contested jumper that missed.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander — who almost had his first game without free-throw attempts in nearly two years — sunk a pair of late free throws to seal the win and a stunning final two minutes.

After a strong first half where the Thunder built a 10-point lead, the Cavaliers exited the break with much better play and eventually built a lead as large as 10 points. A 63-point second half was led by Mitchell, who scored a game-high 43 points on 15-of-27 shooting.

For most of the second half, the Cavaliers did an excellent job at forcing the Thunder to play a low-scoring brand of basketball. Prior to the late 15-3 run, the Thunder shot 43% from the field for the second half and were forced to settle for contested jump shots in a stagnated offense. The offensive issues also extended to ball security, as OKC committed 18 turnovers.

The feeling around this game until the last two minutes felt like an inevitable OKC loss. The Cavaliers are a strong playoff contender and — even without Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen — posed a tough challenge.

If the Thunder would’ve lost this game, it wouldn’t have revealed any serious problems. It could’ve easily been shrugged off as a competitive loss to a playoff team.

Instead, the Thunder’s late run resulted in one of the more impressive OKC wins in recent history and continues to supply fuel for the evergrowing hype surrounding this team.

“Our compete level lifted us tonight,” Daigneault said. “I thought we were really, really competitive. Tough defensively — especially in the first half. And the great situational grit to hang in there. That was our best identity stretch of the game.”

Let’s look at Thunder player grades.

Recap: OKC Thunder’s Sunday practice (Oct. 22)

Here’s a quick recap of the Thunder’s Sunday practice and what Mark Daigneault, SGA and Lu Dort had to say to media.

The Oklahoma City Thunder held practice on Sunday as they continue to prepare for Wednesday’s regular-season opener against the Chicago Bulls.

Following practice, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort spoke with the media. Gilgeous-Alexander was the last of the three to speak as he worked on individual skills and was the last player to wrap up his session.

Daigneault spoke about the Thunder’s roster-building philosophy and their thoughts on heliocentric offenses. Gilgeous-Alexander talked about learning from Michael Jordon when it comes to sacrificing on-ball reps. Dort talked about this weekend’s productive practices.

Let’s recap what Daigneault, Gilgeous-Alexander and Dort had to say following Sunday’s practice.

Player grades: Lu Dort shines at Montreal in 128-125 preseason loss to Pistons

Player grades for the Thunder’s 128-125 preseason loss to the Pistons.

During Thursday’s shootaround, Lu Dort was surrounded by a sea of reporters popping off questions. The Montreal native was the star of the day as he prepared to play his first professional game in his hometown.

It only made sense Dort was fed the first shot of the night for the Oklahoma City Thunder in their 128-125 preseason loss to the Detroit Pistons.

The Thunder realized how special a night this was for Dort and wanted to commemorate their defensive leader by making him the focal point of OKC’s offense.

“I (knew) I was going to come out here and try to put on a little show and hopefully play good in front of my people,” Dort said. “I felt like I did. I was really happy for the Thunder and the NBA to make that possible.”

With the return of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder had their first chance to see what their preferred starting lineup could look like. One preseason game in and the starters looked fantastic. All five finished with a positive plus-minus and four were at least plus-10.

“This is the first year in a little bit that we’ve had the majority of the group the next season,” Gilgeous-Alexander said about the roster continuity. “So that kinda propels us, like you said, into the next season.”

The Thunder offense continued to score with ease in their second preseason contest. After scoring 122 points in regulation against the San Antonio Spurs, the Thunder had 125 points tonight.

The 3-point ball was hitting for OKC; it shot 17-of-43 (39.5%) from outside. Free throws were also frequent for the Thunder as they went 32-of-39 (82.1%) from the charity stripe.

Alas, defense continues to be an issue in the preseason slate. After leading by as many as 21 points, the Pistons mounted a comeback against OKC with a 38-point fourth quarter.

The Pistons, who will play the Thunder in their preseason finale at Tulsa on Oct. 19, had six players score in double figures.

James Wiseman had 20 points and 10 rebounds. Jaden Ivey had 13 points on 6-of-17 shooting and five turnovers. Killion Hayes scored 16 points and had four assists. Rookie Ausar Thompson had eight points on 2-of-10 shooting, eight rebounds and two blocks. Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren were ruled out for the game.

While it’s disappointing to see the Thunder lose control of a game they dominated for 75% of it, it’s important to add the caveat the fourth-quarter collapse occurred with the reserves of both teams.

Plus it’s preseason, so it’s hard to get too worked up over the final result of this game. Nonetheless, blowing a double-digit lead shouldn’t take away from the positive signs that were shown by the Thunder starters when they were on the court.

All in all, this was a successful first trip to Montreal. Dort had his moment in the spotlight and the Thunder’s starting lineup looked like it could be a lethal scoring machine.

“Big thank you to the city of Montreal and the basketball community here,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said. “Historic venue that we’re humbled to be playing in and in the game environment tonight, the crowd environment tonight was awesome.”

Let’s look at Thunder player grades.

Recap: Tuesday’s OKC Thunder practice

Here’s a recap of the Thunder’s Oct. 10 practice:

The Oklahoma City Thunder held practice on Tuesday the day following their preseason-opening win against the San Antonio Spurs.

Following practice, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault and Lu Dort spoke to the media. Daigneault continued to rave about Cason Wallace’s debut. Meanwhile, Dort talked about how excited he was to play in his hometown Montreal for their second preseason game against the Detroit Pistons.

During practice, Aleksej Poksevski and Vasilije Micic were spotted working together. Both players continue to rehab from their respective sprained ankles. Chet Holmgren was also working with Thunder shooting coach Chip Engelland.

Here’s a recap of Tuesday’s Thunder practice and the biggest takeaways of what Daigneault and Dort said.

Recap: Wednesday’s 2023-24 OKC Thunder training camp

Here’s what Mark Daigneault, SGA and Lu Dort said following Wednesday’s training camp.

The Oklahoma City Thunder held their second day of training camp on Wednesday as they prepare to face the San Antonio Spurs in their preseason opener on Monday, Oct. 9.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort spoke with the media following the session. Aleksej Pokusevski, who is recovering from an ankle sprain, was also spotted at the facility.

Gilgeous-Alexander spoke about his pairing with Chet Holmgren while Dort talked about his return to Montreal for OKC’s preseason game against the Detroit Pistons on Oct. 12.

Let’s recap what Daigneault, Gilgeous-Alexander and Dort had to say following the second day of training camp.

2023-24 OKC Thunder Media Day: Lu Dort aims to improve shooting efficiency

“We have a lot of guys on our team that can make plays, so I’ve just got to really be in the right spots.”

Heading into the 2023-24 season, the most polarizing player on the Oklahoma City Thunder roster appears to be Lu Dort once again.

Four seasons into his career, Dort has established himself as one of the best perimeter defenders in the league. On the other end of the floor, the inconsistencies are enough for portions of the fan base to voice displeasure.

Dort’s struggles finishing around the rim paired with his inconsistent high-volume 3-point shooting have caused fans to wonder how much longer the Thunder can stomach the bad offensive possessions and shots.

On shots within 3 feet of the basket, Dort shot a career-low 52.1% last season. He shot 59.2% from that distance in his first three seasons.

It appears Dort is aware of the criticisms, too. He spoke about what he worked on in the offseason. During his media day availability, he mentioned he wants to be a better finisher around the rim and wants to provide spacing for OKC.

“My main thing was just to be more efficient,” Dort said. “I got in a little slump efficiency-wise and all that around the rim, but really reading what the defense gives me, honestly, and not be in a rush, taking my time.

“We have a lot of guys on our team that can make plays, so I’ve just got to really be in the right spots and space out and be ready to make the right play.”

While the actual results ultimately matter, Dort being self-aware enough to realize his offensive inefficiencies is an important first step in evolving as a player as his role will likely change with the Thunder.

If Dort can be a league-average shooter around the rim, then that’ll help him out tremendously with his long-term outlook as an NBA starter. If not, then maybe it’ll be time for a serious conversation surrounding his ceiling as an NBA player.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

OKC Thunder 3 goals: What Lu Dort has to accomplish in 2023-24 season

Assigning 3 goals for Lu Dort for the upcoming season:

In this continuing series, Thunder Wire assigns three goals to each of the 21 players, per Spotrac, that make up the Oklahoma City Thunder roster.

The Thunder’s season kicks off on Oct. 25 against the Chicago Bulls. After a surprising 40-42 campaign that ended a win shy of the playoffs, OKC enters this year with playoff aspirations.

Let’s assign three goals for Lu Dort, who will enter the season penciled in as a starter. The 24-year-old has established himself as one of the better perimeter defenders in the league, but question marks on offense make him a controversial figure.

In 74 games last season, he averaged 13.7 points on 38.8% shooting, 4.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists.

PHOTOS: Best images from Canada’s 127-118 OT win over USA for 3rd-place finish

Here are the best photos from Canada’s 127-118 OT win over the United States to finish in 3rd place for the 2023 FIBA World Cup:

Despite not advancing to the finals, Canada concluded its impressive summer campaign with a third-place finish in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

Canada escaped the comeback by the United States in its 127-118 overtime win to finish with bronze medals.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was excellent for Canada in its nine-point win. He finished with 31 points on 11-of-20 shooting, 12 assists and six rebounds. Oklahoma City Thunder teammate Lu Dort also played an important role with 11 points and six rebounds off the bench.

Let’s look at some of the best photos from Canada’s OT win as it finished third in the final World Cup standings.