Thunder 140, Hawks 129: The Day After Report
Nuggets and Notes
- The Oklahoma City Thunder scored 140 points, won by double digits, and this one wasn't the most fun to watch, I'm going to be honest.
- Atlanta was without Trae Young, Jalen Johnson, and Kristaps Porzingis, and still absolutely lit up the Thunder's vaunted defense. A big reason was "they just got hot, man". Like what do you say when Nickeil Alexander-Walker nails a desperation 44-foot heave at the buzzer (while being defended well by Alex Caruso).
- The Hawks ended up taking 54 threes and converted 25 to shoot 46% from beyond the arc (that's 46% for you math nerds). At the same time, Atlanta managed the turnover margin (16 for ATL, 14 for OKC) and limited OKC's ability to score off turnovers (the Thunder was just +4 in this category). Honestly, a good recipe to stay in a game when you're overmatched.
- Another night of Thunder dominance in the paint, with 70 points inside (even without Isaiah Hartenstein).
- No doubt, the Thunder player of the game was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Atlanta had no one to defend him. SGA scored 39 points in 36 minutes on 15-of-24 shooting. The MVP could've easily had 50+ if he just wanted to cook all alone, but the man is a team player.
- Another very solid game for Chet Holmgren, with 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting, plus 10 rebounds and 2 blocks. There were several moments when Atlanta was making a run, and Chet steadied things offensively.
- Staying on the big three, I thought Jalen Williams had a very nice game offensively. Dub scored 20 points, and while his shooting percentages weren't great (8-17), he was passing well (he led the team with 7 assists) and was getting to the basket almost at will.
- Against his brother, Cason Wallace outshined Keaton, even when Keaton was smoking hot from three (3-4). Cason got the start for Hartenstein and in 34 minutes, scored 17 points, including an inferno-level hot 5-of-6 from deep. And of course he had 7 rebounds, 2 steals, and a block.
- Alex Caruso found his stroke. Caruso scored 16, missed only 1 shot (zero from deep), while also grabbing 8 rebounds and nabbing 2 steals in the process.
- I mean, offensively, the Thunder looked great. 140 points is a lot, my guy.
- Hey, that's now 2 wins a row, and with the Spurs losing to the Cavaliers, OKC pushes its lead in the Western Conference back up to 4.5 games.
One Key Takeaway
Post-game, Mark Daigneault called out the defensive lapses, and that is probably the takeaway from this one. The short-handed Hawks had no business putting 74 first-half points and 129 total against the league's best defense.
Like I said, a big part of it was Atlanta hitting some shots that, to repeat myself, had no business going in, but the havoc-inducing defense we're used to just wasn't there for long enough stretches to put the Hawks away. In the second half, they dialed in to start the third quarter, and it looked like we'd have a repeat of the win against the 76ers, but the defensive intensity declined, and the Hawks got right back into it.
A win is a win, but there's still a lot the Thunder can do to show the world it's the best team in the NBA.
