Thunder 104, Warriors 97: The Day After Report

Box Score | Play-by-Play

The Oklahoma City Thunder skeleton crew pulled out an ugly win against the husk of the Golden State Warriors. Shai (27 & 5) led OKC on another group injury night we've grown accustomed to: Chet Holmgren (sick), Isaiah Hartenstein (calf bruise), and Alex Caruso (hip bruise) joined long-haulers Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell in street clothes, and the Warriors were down Steph Curry, Moses Moody, and De'Anthony Melton on top of Jimmy Butler.

Nuggets & Notes

• We had ourselves a tale of two halves. OKC splashed 11 of 20 in the first half, with each of the non-Shai starters (Isaiah Joe, Lu Dort, Jaylin Williams, Cason Wallace) cashing one in before the halfway mark in the first quarter.
• Shai's customary can't-stop-me foul drawing paired with Isaiah Joe's assertiveness (18 pts, 2-7 3PA, 6-6 FTA) to keep the points coming one at a time, when the twos and threes could not.
• It was another throwback to last year's frontcourt-by-guard-committee small ball, with Jaylin Williams as the only true center in the lineup. One stark contrast to last year's micro Thunder, though: Aaron Wiggins, Joe, and McCain often have to resort to fouling when found alone at the rim. OKC's guard helpers have always fouled as necessary in those mismatches, but JDub and Caruso possess the elite playmaking instincts to turn the tables with strips, blocks, and contests the others can't emulate.
• It's been Jared McCain's world for a minute, and he drained two threes in 60 seconds in the first.
• Nails cuts through space like butter. His round-the-world quest for his third trey featured the kind of off-ball gravity and motion Thunder fans have just never experienced. One of the only pretty plays OKC generated all night.
• The Warriors had no interest leaving anyone on Shai island. They pressured the ball out of his hands and fouled to stop clean shots and drives when he evaded the extra attention. In the first half, SGA tallied 12 points and 4 of OKC's 24 assists, feeding his teammates plenty of downhill 4-on-3s by making the easy read on their sellouts. They built a 67-54 lead entering the half.
• But in the second half, the Thunder came out sloppy against a recharged Warriors squad. Golden State forced turnovers, drew fouls, and grabbed offensive boards while the Thunder went ice cold (30.6% from the floor, 18.2% from deep).
• Gary Payton Jr. did a better job on ball, as did the Warriors help defenders scrambling and recovering out of doubles in the second half. Shai only had 1 of the Thunder's 8 assists in the second half of play, and 2 of their 10 turnovers.
• The Warriors scrapped their way back to a 77-all tie midway through the third, but never managed to take the lead.
• Kenrich Williams was big in a big game. Shocker, I know. Kenny Hustle manned the undersized paint, often by his lonesome, and racking up 13 points and several key stops.
• Fan favorite Draymond Green was the only strand connecting the Thunder/Warrios rivalry past, and treated the Paycom Center boobirds to a couple quick threes early in the first quarter. Green was definitely up for the game, prowling on defense and pressuring the rim on offense.
• Kristaps Porzingis appeared in just his second game with Golden State since they acquired him at the deadline. I hesitate to discuss his injury since Steve Kerr alerted the HIPAA watchdogs by contradicting his reported POTS condition before taking it back.  Porzingis and Draymond AND Al Horford would've been a nightmare fronctourt to battle a few years ago.
• The Warriors may be older, slower, and missing their best players, but they are tough
• Fresh off being inked to a multi-year deal, Gui Santos kept balling. 22 & 11 for the Brazilian.
• Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. GP2 bricked two free throws that would've tied it back up at 81, and Porzingis airballed a wide open three that would've evened it at 86 in the fourth. Related: Draymond made more threes (4) in the game than he did in warmups.
• I was honestly pretty bummed once I knew I'd be missing Steph in person. But I can't say I missed watching him when the Warriors kept missing those would-be back-breaking shots. He's hurt me enough.
• Another stressful game that gives me more calm regarding the non-star Thunders in the postseason. Aside from hanging on in the clutch, OKC extended a 3-point lead to 98-90 while Shai rested the first half of the fourth quarter.
• It was truly, comically an ugly win. J-Will doinked a pass off of a fan's dome for a turnover, and then gave Dort the same treatment. The Warriors were ugly down the stretch, too. Brandin Podziemski blew by J-Will then airballed the. Multiple bodies hit the floor for multiple slippery pig loose ball moments. Kristaps missed a bunny. Did I mention it was ugly?
• You can blame John and me for the J-Will offensive jinx. Before the game, we praised the fluidity he's brought to the offense all season. He turned it over 6 times in that second half, missing several cutters and spot-up shooters with errant or tipped passes.
• In the end, the MVP got it done. Shai finally hit a hero shot, swishing home a three to make it 102-97, his only make in the fourth. Then he finished off Golden State with free throws following an intentional foul, and recovering his own block on Gui to seal the win on the Warriors' final possession.
• SGA notched his 125th straight 20+ point game, one away from tying Wilt Chamberlain's all-time record.

One Key Takeaway: Home Away from Home

Brandon enjoyed this one with his family, while I played on-site beat reporter for the first time since COVID. Our little blog has always been a labor of love from people like myself, John, Ryan, and Brandon trying to keep up with our day jobs and families while contributing to the obsessive Thunder fan base to which we belong.

Thank you, as always, for supporting Daily Thunder and keeping us going. And shout out to Mike at the arena for the hospitable assist.