The young OKC Thunder hung around against an injured Charlotte Hornets squad firmly in playoff contention, but a career night from Jalen McDaniels was the difference in a 113-102 Charlotte win.
This was a night to be excited about as a Thunder fan gearing towards the future, as international rookies Aleksej Pokusevski and Theo Maledon showed out early. Pokusevski set a Thunder franchise rookie record with 7 made threes, finishing with 25 points and 9 rebounds despite not playing the final 5:18 of regulation due to a minor hip injury per Oklahoman Sports Thunder beat writer Joe Mussatto:
Poku confirmed it was a nagging hip injury from his early dunk attempt. Doesn't sound serious. https://t.co/AiwUQ1fy0l
— Joe Mussatto (@joe_mussatto) April 8, 2021
Oh, and about that early dunk attempt:
Poku is going to make me take heart pills tonight. pic.twitter.com/exIa1Hydqn
— Spencer Percy (@QCHspencer) April 8, 2021
Maledon put together a productive night offensively, matching his fellow rookie teammate with 25 points of his own.
Here are three takeaways from OKC’s loss that dropped the Thunder to 20-31: