OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma City Thunder didn’t let their collective foot off the gas pedal in a quick one-game homestand as they took care of business against the Indiana Pacers, 126-106.
With the Thunder collecting confidence in recent weeks, they were able to avoid a lackadaisical loss against the Pacers. This matchup had ‘trap game’ written all over it and to OKC’s credit, they were able to open the game up with a 17-1 lead and never looked back.
A historic assists night helped the Thunder win, as they dished out a franchise-record 41 assists on 47-of-93 (50.5%) shooting. From outside, the Thunder shot 16-of-38 (42.1%) from 3.
It was a team effort as nobody took more than 17 shots and seven of the 11 Thunder players who played scored at least 10 points.
The Pacers never really got anything going as they were missing Tyrese Haliburton. Andrew Nembhard had the most notable game as he finished with
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: B
With the Thunder playing great team basketball recently, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander decided to take a passive role with 23 points on 7-of-17 shooting. Gilgeous-Alexander also finished with six assists, three rebounds and three assists.
Besides the tame box score numbers, Gilgeous-Alexander did finish with a game-high plus-38 in his 30 minutes and was able to get to the free-throw line frequently and went 8-of-9 from the line.
Josh Giddey: A-
Josh Giddey continues to play well as he attacks the paint on a regular basis.
Giddey finished with 16 points on 8-of-12 shooting, 11 assists and six rebounds. Like Gilgeous-Alexander, Giddey played within the flow of the offense and let his teammates cook with the ball.
Lu Dort: A+
Lu Dort had an efficient night on both sides of the ball.
Dort finished with 22 points on 8-of-14 from the field and went 3-of-5 from 3. Dort also added 11 rebounds to collect a double-double.
Both Buddy Hield and Bennedict Mathurin had uncharacteristically quiet nights. Hield finished with three points on 1-of-4 shooting from 3 and Mathurin — the Montreal native — finished with 13 points on 4-of-10 shooting.
Kenrich Williams: A
With the Thunder passing the ball around, Kenrich Williams had a career night.
Williams, who started as the small-ball five, finished with 12 points and a career-high 10 assists.
Williams continues to be a key piece in OKC’s success as he plays a vital role. While he’s known for being a hustler and going the extra mile, it’s also important to recognize Williams is a skilled basketball player too.
Story originally appeared on Thunder Wire