Thunder Shine in All-Star Break Return, Defeat Clippers
In the age of the NBA with little rivalries, one seems to be brewing between the Oklahoma City Thunder and LA Clippers.
Stemmed largely from the trade that shook the basketball world in 2019 — where Paul George and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander were swapped alongside a heaping pile of draft picks — a natural rivalry has grown between the organizations, especially as they both are competing for a championship at the same time.
Last time the Clippers came out on top, but the Thunder made sure to get its win back, defeating LA 129-107.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a fantastic night against his former team, recording 31 points, four rebounds, seven assists, a steal and two blocks on 12-of-19 shooting. Offensively the MVP candidate was brilliant from all areas of the floor, even having a crossover into a two-pointer sequence against Norman Powell.
Luguentz Dort also had one of his most efficient games of the entire season, dropping 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting and holding the Clippers' star trio fairly well throughout the night. Chet Holmgren also had himself a solid outing, scoring 17 points with 10 rebounds, three assists and three blocks, truly doing it all for the Thunder.
An important note is the debut of Gordon Hayward to the lineup, although it ws a fairly lackluster night. He finished with zero points and four rebounds, but played solid defense in just over 13 minutes. His It isn't anything to worry about, but wasn't the ideal first game for both parties together.
The contest opened with a fast pace, with Holmgren hitting two three-point jumpers in the first three minutes of play. The Clippers did start to pull away from the Thunder with a 23-16 lead at the 4:51 minute mark, but the Thunder fought back to gain a 35-33 lead at the end of the 12 minutes.
The second quarter brought plenty of back and forth play, with most of the Oklahoma City offense coming from Gilgeous-Alexander's 19 first half points. Leonard and Powell combined for 26 to rival that, but the Thunder still had a two-point advantage at the end of the half, 61-59.
Oklahoma City's momentum carried into the third quarter, where it got its first true big lead of the game. After a slam dunk from Isaiah Joe, a step back 3-pointer from Gilgeous-Alexander and some free throws, it had a nine-point lead.
By the end of third quarter, the lead stretched out to 96-82, giving the Thunder the potential for a blowout in the fourth quarter.
That very possibility came true. Oklahoma City did not let up no matter how close the game looked to be over, it kept throwing down buckets. Even Jalen Williams — who had a relatively quiet night up to the fourth quarter — took the final few minutes to nail a few buckets to officially put away LA, bringing his total to 18 and the fans in attendance to their feet.
Oklahoma City will rest before tomorrow's matchup against the Washington Wizards (9-45) at 7:00 p.m. CT in Paycom Center.
Want to join the discussion? Like Inside the Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.
