After an early deficit, the Thunder ignited their offense, securing a dominant "double win" against the Clippers with a stellar performance that also helps draft positioning.
It had been four days off for the Oklahoma City Thunder since suffering its second loss of the season Saturday against the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Cup in Las Vegas, and the time away from the court felt like a positive. The roster got closer to full health, OKC stacked a couple good practice days, and the loss had time to soak in instead of getting buried by the next game on the schedule.
On Thursday night, the Thunder got right back on track with a win over the LA Clippers, and there was a little extra juice attached to this one. OKC owns the Clippers’ unprotected first-round pick in this June’s draft, so every LA loss is essentially a small bonus for the Thunder. In other words, this was a “double win” for OKC. The Thunder came out on top 122-101.
It didn’t look that way early. The Thunder started slow, like the layoff had created some rust. The Clippers led for more than 11 of the 12 minutes in the first quarter and pushed the margin as high as 11. LA came out scorching, going 14-of-22 from the floor (63.6%) and 4 of 9 from beyond the arc, and the Clippers also controlled the glass, especially on the defensive end, by a 14-5 margin.
Then OKC flipped the game with two high-octane quarters that have become the Thunder’s calling card. The second quarter was a 37-point explosion that swung things with a plus-15 differential. The third quarter was even louder: 39 points and an 11-point edge. At that point, the game was essentially over, and the bench unit was able to carry things home the rest of the way, with Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren also getting some burn in the final frame.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did what he’s done all season, finishing with 32 points, seven rebounds, and six assists in just 28 minutes. It was a slow start for him, but he ramped up and closed strong, going 13-of-24 from the floor and getting to the line just six times. Holmgren added 22 points and seven rebounds. Jalen Williams chipped in 20 points and five assists. Ajay Mitchell was back to being a spark plug, posting 16 points, seven rebounds, and five assists, and Isaiah Joe returned from injury and poured in 14.
It was a clean, collective win for the Thunder, who handled early adversity, did what a heavy favorite is supposed to do, and moved to 25-2. The Clippers dropped to 6-21, and now OKC turns right around for Minnesota on Friday night on the second night of a back-to-back.