Things looked bleak after the first two and a half quarters of this game; with the Oklahoma City Thunder trailing the Dallas Mavericks 70-48 with 5:42 left, the game looked all but over. The Thunder were not able to get any offense going and struggled generating points and converting on their shots.
But things began to click for the Thunder the rest of the way as they outscored the Mavericks 53-34. Ultimately, the 22-point deficit was too much to overcome and the Thunder lost by two points. Nonetheless, this was a great performance by the team that showed off their resilience and ability to overcome deficits and make things interesting, especially against a Mavericks team that were 8-1 in the 2022 calendar year before this game.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way as he outdueled his fellow 2018 NBA Draft comrade in Luka Doncic with 34 points on 18 shots and 12 free throws. For the Mavericks, Doncic led the way with a 20 point, 12 assist and 11 rebound triple double. Let’s take a look at player grades.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: A+
Gilgeous-Alexander had his third 30 point game in his last four performances in Dallas with 34 points on 11-of-18 shooting and 11-of-12 free throw shooting to go along with five assists and six rebounds.
Gilgeous-Alexander was fantastic in the paint all game long and was able to slither his way to the rim multiple times at way. It is amazing just how crafty and methodical Gilgeous-Alexander’s driving game is and it was in full display this game. Gilgeous-Alexander only shot four threes and made just one, but when his drives are coming with ease, there’s no point in limiting them and settling for long jumpers. The Mavericks had no answer for him as he led the comeback for the Thunder.
Lu Dort: A
Lu Dort had another great scoring game as he finished with 18 points on an efficient 7-of-14 shooting. Dort also grabbed seven rebounds. Dort was able to use his big body and attack the Mavericks in the paint all game long, where he shot 4-of-5.
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Dort would foul out with 2:05 left in the game, and in a close game like that, losing your second-leading scorer is going to make winning the game that much more difficult. Who knows if Dort playing the final two minutes would have made a difference in the final score, but it’s certainly something to acknowledge.
Josh Giddey: B-
Josh Giddey did not have his best game as he finished with 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting along with six rebounds, five assists and four turnovers. One of the bigger mistake Giddey made was inbounding the ball late in the game with 1.8 seconds left with the Thunder down by two; in that play, he tried a long pass to Mike Muscala but the pass led to a turnover that ended the contest.
Giddey, who is usually a phenomenal inbound passer, failed to give the Thunder a chance at a shot to win the game. For some additional context, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault mentioned after the game that Giddey has three options on the inbound pass in the order of preference of Ty Jerome, Muscala and then Gilgeous-Alexander.
Darius Bazley: C
Darius Bazley was given his first starting nod in over a month and finished with two points, a block and six rebounds. Compare that to his stats when coming off the bench of 11.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.5 blocks, then it does not look impressive in comparison. But Daigneault mentioned after the game that he thought Bazley’s start went well as he gave Kristaps Porzingis trouble when matched up against him. For reference, Porzingis finished with 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting.
Daigneault also mentioned before the game that Bazley was going to start in last Thursday’s Brooklyn Nets game if Kevin Durant played. So it seems like Daigneault is going to give Bazley the starting nod in games that feature long, lengthy forwards who can shoot the ball.
Aaron Wiggins: C
While Bazley was the starter, Aaron Wiggins actually ended up outplaying him as he was on the floor for 31 minutes compared to his 19 minutes. In those 31 minutes, Wiggins finished with eight points, five rebounds and two steals. Daigneault complimented Wiggins after the game and said he thought he had a good game as well.
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