OKLAHOMA CITY — It wasn’t pretty, but the Oklahoma City Thunder once again found a way.
Behind 31 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a gritty late push, the defending champs remained unbeaten with a 107-101 comeback win over the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night at Paycom Center.
For most of the night, though, the Thunder looked tired and played like it. Coming off a win in Dallas on Monday, Oklahoma City’s legs appeared heavy from the start. Shots that normally fall around the rim didn’t go down, with the Thunder missing several easy looks and even a missed dunk from Cason Wallace. Their 42-92 shooting mark (45.7%) was buoyed late, but for three quarters, the offense looked stuck in mud.
Defensively, it wasn’t much sharper early on. The Thunder, usually disciplined rotations, looked a step slow, allowing the Kings to get to their spots and knock down clean looks. Sacramento shot over 56% in the first half and took advantage of a Thunder team that seemed to lack its usual physical edge.
Oklahoma City’s closeouts were late, and its interior defense wasn’t imposing, especially without Chet Holmgren, who sat out with lower back soreness.
All that led to the Thunder trailing most of the night. Even as Gilgeous-Alexander tried to create rhythm, his 2-10 third quarter symbolized the team’s overall frustration.
But something shifted late. The Thunder, who have already made a habit of late game poise so far this season, found another level in the fourth quarter.
Plays that eluded them early finally broke their way, and it wasn’t by accident. Lu Dort, who scored 13 points and hit a crucial 3 pointer to put OKC ahead 99-97, came up with a massive hustle play by wrestling an offensive rebound away from Domantas Sabonis in the final minutes. Moments later, Alex Caruso, who contributed 8 points, 3 assists, and 2 steals off the bench, grabbed a key offensive rebound off a missed free throw to keep a possession alive.
Those kinds of effort plays, which had been missing earlier, flipped the momentum. Gilgeous-Alexander sealed the win with a step back 3 in the final seconds, completing a 9 point fourth quarter that reminded everyone why he’s one of the league’s most dependable closers.
Aaron Wiggins and Ajay Mitchell each added 18 points, providing vital support for an offense short on energy and missing several rotation pieces. Isaiah Hartenstein pulled down 14 rebounds, while Dort and Wiggins combined for nine assists and six steals.
Perhaps most importantly, Oklahoma City again showed the value of head coach Mark Daigneault’s trust in his players. Rather than over coaching or calling constant sets late, Daigneault let his group figure things out, a pattern that’s paid off so far this season. Four of Oklahoma City’s five wins have come in close games, and their composure continues to shine through.
Not over coaching this group is something Daigneault has talked about previous to this year but it’s kind of hard to see play out when they are blowing out teams every night like the did last season. In their first five games, we have been able to see just what Daigneault was talking about. Letting his guys figure out how to win these close games has been invaluable.
Not taking out young guys who make mistakes because it’s better for them to learn from it. It’s a unique philosophy and it’s nice to see things play out after he says it.
It wasn’t their sharpest performance, but it was another example of why this Thunder team is 5-0, resilient, unselfish, and relentless when it matters most.
