Tag: Tre Mann

OKC Thunder player grades: Josh Giddey scores career-high in 113-103 loss to Kings

Hey, Josh Giddey was pretty good this game, right?

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s three-game winning streak comes to an end in the hand of the Sacramento Kings, 113-103. With the Thunder missing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Aaron Wiggins, they did relatively well at making this game competitive for the entirety of the game.

Then it appears that the Thunder’s juice run out in the second half and the Kings were able to grow a lead and not give it up. The Thunder were able to make things interesting and cut the deficit to single digits multiple times in the fourth quarter, but the Thunder were not able to get consistent stops and essentially exchanged buckets for most of the quarter. The Thunder missing four of its top six players in minutes per game along with playing on the second night of a road back-to-back probably played a factor in the team losing this game. Now, these aren’t excuses for the team; the Kings earned this win. They are simply reasons as to what caused the Thunder to lose this game.

For the Kings, Tyrese Haliburton, Harrison Barnes and Maurice Harkless led the way in this win. Haliburton finished with a 13 point and 17 assist double double; Barnes finished with 24 points, five assists and nine rebounds; Harkless had an 18 point and 11 rebound double double.

Overall, the Thunder winning its first three games without Gilgeous-Alexander was a surprising development but Saturday night proved that the team is mortal and can overcome only so many injuries before it starts to negatively impact the team. But give the Thunder credit for making it interesting for the full 48 minutes. Let’s take a look at player grades.

OKC Thunder player grades: Lu Dort, Josh Giddey leads team to third-straight win

The Thunder were able to extend its winning streak to three games as they defeat the Trail Blazers for a second time in a five-day span.

The Oklahoma City Thunder were able to make it two-for-two this week in terms of wins over the Portland Trail Blazers as they win one on the road against their divisional rival, 96-93. The Trail Blazers had a chance to tie the game after inbounding the ball full court with 3.1 seconds left but Anfernee Simons missed a fairly decent look from deep and the buzzer sounded.

This win extends the Thunder’s winning streak to three games — all without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander — behind the backs of Lu Dort and Josh Giddey. Dort continues to step up and carry the scoring load as he led the team with 23 points while Giddey added 16 points and seven rebounds.

For the Trail Blazers, Simons and CJ McCollum led the team in scoring with 19 points each while Jusuf Nurkic contributed with a 14 point and 16 rebound double-double. Let’s take a look at player grades in this win.

Josh Giddey jokingly teased Tre Mann for finishing just shy of 30 points

Mann finished with a career-high 29 points to help lead the Thunder to an overtime win over the Mavericks.

Tre Mann on Wednesday produced his first career 20-point game to help lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to an overtime win on the road over the Dallas Mavericks.

Mann finished with a career-high 29 points, three assists, one steal and one blocked shot in the 120-114 win. He shot 8-of-14 from the field, including 6-of-8 from 3-point range, in 41 minutes of work as the Thunder won their second straight game.

The 18th pick went to work early, recording 10 points alone in the first quarter. Mann knew, without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the lineup, the Thunder needed to come out aggressive early and set the tone, and he did just that.

“I gotta come out more aggressive,” Mann said. “Coach Mark (Daigneault) talked to me before the game. He said: ‘Make them pay for your offense. That’s why you’re out there.’ … So that’s what it was. I just came out really aggressive. I attacked off of the catch early, saw some go in and that’s what I was thinking the whole game.”

Mann made just his fifth start of the season and third straight as the Thunder play without Gilgeous-Alexander, who is expected to be out at least through the All-Star break with a sprained ankle. His 29 points surpassed his previous career-high of 19 as it was easily his best outing of the season.

Daigneault credited Mann for staying aggressive from the start of the game.

He was outstanding, obviously. I thought he was way more decisive, way more aggressive. He is always aggressive after he has the ball but I thought he was more aggressive before it came to him tonight. He just had a mentality where he was going to rip open shots and be decisive in his actions, which is, obviously, something we’ve talked about a lot.

Mann also earned a bit of praise from rookie teammate Josh Giddey for his play. Giddey thought Mann made plays for the Thunder all game long and even took a hilarious jab at him during his postgame press conference, via Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman.

The moment between Giddey and Mann offered a great look at the team chemistry in Oklahoma City. They represent a big part of the future for the Thunder and it appears as though they are having some fun with other this season.

The performance by Mann certainly offered a glimpse into his potential. The team has prioritized his development this season and it looks as though he has made huge strides throughout the year. For now, the team will certainly hope that continues.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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OKC Thunder player grades: Tre Mann, Lu Dort, Josh Giddey lead Thunder to second straight win over Mavericks, 120-114

Tre Mann scored 29 points, Lu Dort scored 30 points, Josh Giddey almost had a triple double. What more could you ask for in a win?

The Oklahoma City Thunder were able to impress as they won its second consecutive game without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander over the Dallas Mavericks, 120-114.

Throughout the week, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault and players have preached a collective effort when it comes to overcoming Gilgeous-Alexander’s absence. And so far, two games in, that has been the case. In Wednesday’s case on the road in Dallas, the Thunder were able to escape overtime with a close win against a playoff contender. Lu Dort and Tre Mann led the way in the scoring department as the former scored 30 points while the latter scored 29 points. Josh Giddey, the recent Rookie of the Month winner, also contributed with a near triple-double.

For the Mavericks, Luka Doncic’s 40 point and 10 assist double double was not enough to overcome the Thunder. Jalen Brunson and Reggie Bullock also contributed with 20 points and 23 points respectively.

This was a very encouraging win for the Thunder as it was led by its young players. Gilgeous-Alexander left a massive vacuum of possessions with his absence and Mann really took advantage of all the new scoring opportunities available on the team. Let’s take a look at player grades.

OKC Thunder quotes: Mark Daigneault, Tre Mann speak with media post-practice

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault and rookie Tre Mann spoke with the media following practice on Tuesday.

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault and rookie Tre Mann spoke with the media following practice on Tuesday. The Thunder come off of a win against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday that snapped a seven-game losing streak. The Thunder’s next game is against the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, Feb. 2. This will be the second game without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is recovering from a right sprained ankle that will keep him out until at least the All-Star Break.

Let’s take a look at some of the most noteworthy quotes and paraphrased from Daigneault and Mann in the post-practice presser.

 

OKC Thunder player grades: Thunder complete 18-point comeback in win against Blazers

The Thunder snap its seven-game losing streak as the Blazers struggle to score just 81 points.

In their first of at least 10 games without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Oklahoma City Thunder were able to complete the 18-point comeback against the Portland Trail Blazers in a 98-81 win. The Thunder were really able to turn things around in the second half as they outscored the Trail Blazers, 59-34.

The Thunder defense deserves a lot of credit. It’s easy to dunk on the Trail Blazers for failing to beat a rebuilding Thunder team without its best player, but keep in mind that they averaged 117.7 points in its last three games.

It was an evenly distributed scoring game for the Thunder as four players finished with double-digit scoring with no one exceeding 18 points. Just like Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault has preached since Gilgeous-Alexander went down, no one single person is going to make up for his production and it’s going to take a collective effort where everybody excels in their role. That was clearly the case in Monday’s win over the Trail Blazers. 22 of its 35 made field goals were assisted on. Now it’s time to see if this can carry over for the remainder of Gilgeous-Alexander’s absence. Let’s take a look at player grades.

OKC Thunder player grades: SGA injures ankle, Dort scores 27 in OT loss to the Pacers

The Thunder extends its losing streak to seven games as the Pacers win in OT; SGA injured his ankle with a nasty sprain.

In their first overtime of the season, the Oklahoma City Thunder fall to the Indiana Pacers, 113-110. Despite feeling dull and sluggish in stretches due to constant stoppage in plays due to referee reviews, this game had quite the exciting finish that included the Thunder blowing a four-on-one opportunity with 11 seconds left down one.

The Pacers were able to escape with a rare road win due to the return of Domantas Sabonis as he finished with a 24 point, 18 rebound and 10 assist triple-double. Justin Holiday also chipped in with 22 points and Jeremy Lamb scored five of his 14 points in overtime.

From a reverse standings perspective, this was a great loss to have as the Thunder’s lead over the Pacers grows to three games and are now tied for the third-best lottery odds in the league with the Houston Rockets. Playing these type of games where the opposition is close in the tank standings are crucial to lose as a full game is on the line.

Now the Thunder wait and see how Shai Gilgeous-Alexander feels as he exited in the third quarter with a nasty ankle sprain and immediately limped his way to the locker room. Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said the team will know more on Saturday. If Gilgeous-Alexander is out in an extended period of time, I have a hard time seeing the Thunder’s recent losing fortunes change as the rebuilding team loses its best player. Let’s take a look at player grades.

OKC Thunder player grades: Thunder forces Nuggets to earn road win, 99-95

After trailing by as many as 18 points, the Thunder’s second unit was able to make it a game as the Nuggets squeeze by with a win.

The Oklahoma City Thunder fell short of completing an 18-point comeback against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday, losing 99-95. Similar to many other games this season, the Thunder trailed 13 points after the first quarter after the Nuggets got off to a hot start – but the Thunder were able to close the gap and make this interesting all the way through.

The Thunder being able to make this a close game is even more impressive considering the fact that this was probably Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s worst game of the season. 10 of the 11 players who touched the floor scored at least seven points with no one exceeding 14 points. This was just a very nice and balanced offensive attack from the team where everybody contributed and were able to overcome Gilgeous-Alexander’s poor shooting night.

Overall, this was a very fun and productive loss where a lot of the young players showed out and played well against a team that has championship aspirations. Let’s take a look at player grades:

OKC Thunder player grades:Thunder suffer blowout loss to Timberwolves

It’s hard to imagine the fact that the Thunder entered this game 13th in the NBA in defensive rating after Friday’s poor defensive performance against the Timberwolves.

The Oklahoma City Thunder lost in rare blowout fashion against the Minnesota Timberwolves, 135-105.

The Thunder, who have been a top-half team in the league in terms of defensive rating this season, did a poor job in the first half containing the Timberwolves and specifically Anthony Edwards. The Timberwolves, who scored just 98 points in the first meeting between these two teams on Wednesday, managed to get 73 points in the first half.

The second half did not see much of a change as the Timberwolves reached 100 points before the third quarter ended. The Thunder were able to keep up somewhat in the first half with 57 points, but the well eventually dried up as the team does not have the offensive firepower to match up in a high-scoring affair. This was seen in the third quarter where the Timberwolves were able to blow this game open as the Thunder struggled to score just 23 points.

Even with the lopsided loss, there were still a few bright spots for the Thunder that include encouraging performances from young players that are both established starters and unproven but exciting talent. Let’s take a look at player grades:

Thunder: Tre Mann cleared from health and safety protocol

Mann on Tuesday was cleared from the health and safety protocol and practiced with the team.

Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Tre Mann on Tuesday was cleared from the NBA’s health and safety protocol and practiced with the team, acting head coach Mike Wilks said.

Mann was a late scratch from the lineup on Dec. 26 to be placed into the health and safety protocol. He was initially negative on that day but later reported symptoms to the team and was eventually re-tested and placed into the protocol.

Along with Mann, the Thunder also got Darius Bazley back from the protocol on Tuesday. They each participated in practice with the team and are expected to be available to play on Wednesday versus the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“It was a pretty light practice so they looked fine,” Wilks said. “(We just went) through some offensive sets, kept it pretty simple. We got up and down just a little bit, not much contact but they looked fine.”

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The team now has only head coach Mark Daigneault and rookie Jeremiah Robinson-Earl still in the protocol. Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and rookie Josh Giddey were each cleared in recent days and have since re-joined the team.

Mann, in 23 appearances, is averaging 7.2 points and two rebounds this season. He has also appeared with the OKC Blue in the NBA G League, averaging 15 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.7 blocked shots in seven games.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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