The Reporters' Notebook: Balanced Attack Fuels Thunder Win

By Nick Gallo and Paris Lawson | okcthunder.com

After a game of turnover tug of war in the first quarter, the Thunder unlocked the Toronto Raptors’ aggressive defense and ran away with the game. Thanks to a 3-to-1 assist to turnover ratio from quarters two through four, the Thunder put on a passing, cutting and shot-making clinic in front of the Paycom Center crowd that was celebrating Veterans Day, and a City Night that debuted the 2022-23 City Edition uniforms for the first time. 

With eight players scoring in double figures for just the second time in Thunder history, the Thunder’s balanced scoring attack was led by two-way player Eugene Omoruyi, who was seamlessly inserted into the lineup to fill in for the injured Darius Bazley and scored 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting, including five-made 3s. Also off the bench was Jalen Williams, who recorded his first career double-double with 10 points and a career-best 11 assists. 

Nick: The Thunder leveraged Toronto’s defensive pressure against them by continuing to attack through the middle of the floor and making the passes quickly and early out into the corner. Lu Dort was a beneficiary of those drive and kicks, nailing all three of his triples in the first 8 minutes of the game. For the night, Dort scored 13 points to go with seven rebounds and two assists on 4-for-7 shooting. 

Paris: Aleksej Pokuševski used a textbook box out on rookie Christian Koloko to secure the defensive rebound. The third-year big man then took it full court for a layup in transition. On the very following possession, he blocked a shot attempt by OG Anunoby which led to a 3-pointer by Lu Dort on the other end of the floor. Coming into the game, Pokusevski had logged four straight games with two or more blocks. Against the Raptors, the 7-footer registered two blocks within the first five minutes of action and four for the game. 

Eugene Omoruyi checked in the game with 3:54 left in the first quarter. Upon checking in, the two-way wing was charged with defending Raptors’ point guard Fred VanVleet. At every turn, VanVleet was met with the chest of Omoruyi who went step-for-step with the veteran – erasing every option available to him on the floor. When VanVleet finally released the ball, it led to a Raptors turnover and a 3-pointer from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on the other end. 

Nick: Making in-game adjustments and making them effectively is a skill usually reserved for veteran squads, but the NBA’s second youngest team ever flipped the game on its head in the second quarter. Following up a challenging first quarter when it turned the ball over nine times against Toronto’s defense, the Thunder was able to rack up 10 assists compared to just two turnovers in the second quarter. The Thunder went small and ensured that all five players on the floor were primed to be playmakers. In fact, by halftime, nine of the Thunder’s 16 assists came from secondary ball-handlers Jalen Williams and Aaron Wiggins. 

Paris: Aaron Wiggins hit OG Anunoby with a nifty spin move on the wing that sent the Raptors’ leader flying out of position. With a wide-open lane in front of him, Wiggins attacked the middle and without looking, dished the ball off to Jalen Williams who elevated and slammed the ball through the rim. That sort of action has been the catalyst for the Thunder’s offense against the aggressive defensive pressure of the Raptors throughout the night - cutting, ball movement and pace. 

Nick: Excellent sequence for Josh Giddey, who bodied up the very physical Scottie Barnes on a drive, forcing last year’s Rookie of the Year into a travel. On the other side of the floor, Giddey took a sideline out of bounds pass and turned it into two points, picking out a cutting Wiggins right through the middle of the floor for a layup. Giddey ripped off five assists, and Wiggins scored 17 points to go with five rebounds and seven assists in the game. 

Paris: Fred VanVleet had the ball at the top of the key with just 1:30 left on the clock. Defended by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, VanVleet used a screen to get a step ahead of SGA. Not giving up on the play – Gilgeous-Alexander used his wide wingspan to poke the ball away from the Raptors’ point guard from behind. Eugene Omoruyi scooped up the loose ball and pitched it ahead to SGA who finished his easiest bucket of the entire night – an uncontested, two hand slam. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 points on 8-for-14 shooting for the game. 

Nick: Mark Daigneault called out a play to get the smallest guy on the floor, Tre Mann up to the top of the key as the screener for Jalen Williams. Mann made contact on the screen, then popped out of it above the arc to await the kickout pass. Williams got deep into the paint, then found Mann at the top of the key, paying off the play that Daigneault called. All five guys on the floor can be the screener, the creator or the play finisher, and the Thunder demonstrated that fully against Toronto’s top 10 defense. 

Paris: After a dunk by Jalen Williams in transition with five minutes left on the clock, the Thunder reached eight players in double figures offensively – which is just the second time that has happened in Thunder history. The Thunder’s ball movement and rapid cutting without the ball has led to an incredibly balanced and efficient scoring night. For the game, the Thunder’s 132 points came on 31 assists and 55.9 percent shooting overall, including 15-of-36 (41.7 percent) from 3. 

“We did a good job course correcting in the game. It's hard to get used to that - it's a different defense and it's a different look than a lot of other teams. So it's a special preparation and I thought we did a good job of learning it as the game went on. Our attacks were really good on offense.” – Mark Daigneault

“Just us coming in as a unit and  trusting each other. Everybody on his team, we're all a big friend group and we trust one another to make a play or to make the shot, so that's what we did when we came out here tonight.” – Eugene Omoruyi

“We’ve got a lot of basketball players on this team, guys that can do multiple things - can pass, shoot and dribble. When teams are doubling me or face-guarding me, it gives them more space to play.” – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

The Thunder hits the road for a four-game trip, continuing its run of Eastern Conference foes with the New York Knicks on Sunday afternoon in Madison Square Garden. OKC will then travel to Boston, Washington, D.C. and Memphis before returning home.