Thunder Holds Off Lakers

By Nick Gallo and Paris Lawson | okcthunder.com

Box Score: OKC 133, LAL 130

The eyes of the entire NBA world were locked on the Thunder’s matchup with the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night, and in a primetime game on national television, the youngest team in the NBA stood tall against a veteran-laden, record-setting Lakers squad for a 133-130 road victory. 

On the second night of a back to back it was the Thunder who seemed to have the most juice, tracking down loose balls and making hustle plays all over the floor. OKC took a lead after an excellent first quarter, then burst out on 14-2 Thunder run in the second quarter to eventually build a 15-point lead. 

With 10.9 seconds remaining in the third quarter, Lakers forward LeBron James hit a fadeaway jump shot at the left elbow to break the NBA’s all-time scoring record, vaulting him to 38,388 career points. The game was stopped for an on-court celebration, including the honorary passing of the basketball from the previous record-holder, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, to James as NBA Commissioner Adam Silver was on hand.

With the action stopped and the Thunder’s momentum extinguished, the Lakers chipped away at OKC’s lead to start the fourth quarter, tying the game at 106. The Thunder responded with a 12-0 fourth quarter run, then held on in the final moments for the victory.  

Nick: All three Williams’ on the floor to start the game for the Thunder hit a 3-pointer (Kenrich, Jalen and Jaylin) in the first three minutes of action as the Thunder tried to use kickouts to generate easy catch-and-shoot looks and to evade the shot blocking presences of Anthony Davis, LeBron James and Thomas Bryant. In the first quarter alone, the Thunder hit seven total 3-pointers and eclipsed the 30 point mark in the first quarter for the 11th time in the last 18 games. 

Paris: Mike Muscala got the ball at the tip of the key – his go-to spot for a bucket in transition. The veteran received a pass from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and rather than just letting the shot fly while contested, Muscala used a savvy pass fake to the corner that moved the defender out of his way and opened up a clear window for a 3-pointer. Muscala finished the first quarter with nine points in just five minutes of action thanks to his three-made triples in the opening frame.

Nick: With the entire arena fixated on every touch of the ball by LeBron James, the Thunder’s defense stayed aware of its own principles, but also how it could exploit the Lakers’ focus on feeding the ball to James. Kenrich Williams stayed in physical, legal guarding position on James while teammates pinched in to prevent driving lanes, and eventually the shot clock came close to expiring when James realized he had nowhere to go. LeBron kicked the ball back out to Troy Brown Jr., but a last second heave went off the backboard, missing the rim for a shot clock violation. 

Paris: For the season, Jaylin Williams is shooting the highest 3-point percentage of any rookie in the NBA at 46.4 percent. Against the Lakers, the rookie stepped into his 10th start of the season and continued his strong shooting streak by knocking down a pair of triples in the first half. Williams has now drained two 3-pointers in four of his last six contests. By the end of the night, the rookie not only recorded 14 points, but also dished out seven assists and pulled down seven boards. 

Nick: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was extremely active to start the third quarter, on both ends of the floor. After catching the ball on the left wing, isolated against an excellent defender in Anthony Davis, SGA attacked middle, stopped on a dime, separated and hit a short jumper in the lane. On defense, Shai was aware in his position in the defensive shell and crashed over on an entry pass that was sent in over the top to James. Shai disrupted the catch, which resulted in a Lakers turnover. On an ensuing possession, Gilgeous-Alexander hustled back in transition defense to prevent a sure-thing fast-break bucket by James and fouled him, forcing him to make two free throws rather than a dunk that would have energized the building. In addition to his two steals, Shai racked up 30 points to go with four rebounds and eight assists. 

Paris: The Thunder thrived behind the 3-point line in the first half, but rode its defense in the third quarter. The Thunder forced six Laker turnovers in the first five minutes of the third which led directly to six points on the other end of the floor. Everyone got in on the action, including big man Jaylin Willians who snagged a steal out of the passing lane and was rewarded on the other end of the floor for a dunk. By the end of the night, OKC forced 21 Lakers turnovers and racked up 27 points off of those miscues. 

Nick: After LeBron James broke the NBA’s all-time scoring record, the game’s rhythm was upended, and the result was a burst by the Lakers to tie the game at 106 early in the fourth quarter. The Thunder responded with great poise and resilience, without a timeout needing to be called by Mark Daigneault. Isaiah Joe, one of six Thunder players in double-figures, hit a 3 on the wing to start the action. Josh Giddey then dropped off a pass to Jalen Williams off the bounce in transition for a layup before Williams made one of his career-high six steals that led to a run out dunk. Joe added a 3 and Giddey scored at the rim on a second chance to break the Thunder’s lead open to a dozen, and the Lakers comeback push ultimately fell short. 

“Everything that happened tonight, our team acted like we expected it to happen. That's the best way I can put it. I thought the collective focus and the collective poise was there and that was contagious tonight - the focus and the poise among the group. I was really encouraged once we huddled after the speech  - the internal dialogue of the team was really cool. They were saying all the right things to each other. It didn't have to come from me, and that's when you know you're kind of humming.”–Coach Daigneault 

“We just tried to play to our identity, play fast, play together and move the ball. They’re obviously a big defense and a smart defense. A lot of these guys have played for a lot of years.

We know that going into games teams’ gameplan is going to be to shut down to paint. We just wanted to play on offense with extra effort, extra ball movement and really work in possessions and also be aggressive.”–Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 

OKC will have two days before heading north to close out it's tough three-game road trip with a Friday night matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers. Following that game, the Thunder has just two more games, both at Paycom Center, prior to the All Star Break.

Zach Beeker | OKC Thunder