The Paycom Center crowd went ballistic once the ball fell through the rim, and the OKC Thunder’s bench was equally ecstatic.
Ironically, the least animated person was the one who hit the shot. That was Chet Holmgren, who simply looked relieved at the sight of his big-time bucket. A corner 3-pointer in the closing seconds to help secure OKC’s 113-105 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in NBA Cup group play Wednesday.
He simply pumped his fist calmly while surrounded by chaos.
On a night when he struggled to get his shots to fall down, Holmgren did so when it mattered most. He finished with 12 points, nine rebounds and one block in 29 minutes.
“Obviously, it was great,” Holmgren said of his shot. “It helped us win the game, and that’s what it’s all about. Not everything was going my way the whole night, but I was just trying to stay in it. Coach (Mark Daigneault) trusted me to be out there to close the game, so I just tried to do what I could to help us get the win.”
OKC is 18-1 this season, becoming just the fifth team in NBA history to reach that record. It’s also 3-0 in NBA Cup group play.
Here are three takeaways from the win:
Order new book on Thunder’s run to NBA title
Anthony Edwards hit a roadblock for three quarters
Anthony Edwards clamped both hands down on the basketball for a defensive board, and the sound of his sneakers screeching could be heard as he broke into a full sprint up the floor.
It’s the metaphorical revving of the engine for the superstar guard, who blends speed and power in a Ferrari-like fashion. But when Edwards reached OKC’s 3-point line, he drove directly into a roadblock. A brick wall by the name of Cason Wallace, who didn’t budge from the collision.
Edwards, however, went crashing to the floor. And while he managed to maintain his dribble, he quickly passed the ball so someone else could take the wheel.
Edwards found himself in a traffic jam for the first three quarters. He constantly faced pesky perimeter defenders and congested driving lanes, which often forced him to give up the rock.
OKC held Edwards to 17 points on 4-for-12 shooting from the field (2 for 6 from deep) until the fourth quarter tipped off. He then erupted for 14 points to help Minnesota make it a close game down the stretch.
That gave Edwards a final stat line of 31 points on 9-for-9 shooting from the field (5 for 10 from deep) and 8-for-12 shooting from the free-throw line.
“Edwards is really a tough cover because he can make deep shots,” Daigneault said. “He’s also an explosive athlete that can beat your coverages and beat your help. It was too many fouls on him. We can’t give him 12 free throws. That’s stuff we can definitely learn from and sharpen our fundamentals on.”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is also highly combustible
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, capable of catching fire in an instant, was waiting to strike. All he needed was a good match.
That proved to be a one-one-one matchup with Julius Randle late in the second quarter. The reigning MVP created space with a hesitation move, followed by a stepback. Then he released a 17-foot jumper that was money.
Gilgeous-Alexander only had six points to his name in 15 minutes of action before that bucket, but it was all he needed to see to catch fire. He scored 13 points in the final three minutes and 37 seconds of the half.
Much like Edwards, Gilgeous-Alexander is also one of the most combustible scorers in the NBA. Despite being constantly smothered, he’ll torch a defense as soon as he receives the slightest bit of air space.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 40 points, six rebounds and six assists in 37 minutes. And he did it all despite initially being listed as questionable due to an illness.
“I feel good,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I felt good enough to play. I was a little more tired out there than usual, but I did enough out there to get the job done tonight. I felt good enough to play, so I played.”
OKC survived, maintained first place in NBA Cup group play
OKC is now 3-0 in NBA Cup group play following its win over Minnesota (2-2).
It holds first place in Group A of the Western Conference entering its final game against Phoenix (3-0) at 8:30 p.m. Friday. The Thunder holds the tie-breaker over the Suns due to point differential (plus-71 compared to plus-35).
If OKC wins, it’ll advance to the knockout round of the NBA Cup. That consists of the top team from each of the six groups and one wild card team from each conference.
But even if OKC loses, there’s a good chance it’ll still get in. It’ll likely have a better point differential than any of the other one-loss teams in the West that didn’t win their group, although it all depends on how Friday’s final slate of games will unfold.
Tip-insGilgeous-Alexander has scored at least 20 points in 91 consecutive regular-season games, which is the third-longest streak in NBA history. He trails Wilt Chamberlain, who had two streaks of 126 games and 92 games.Aaron Wiggins missed his 10th straight game due to a left adductor strain. OKC also continued to be without Thomas Sorber, Nikola Topić, Jalen Williams.Kenrich Williams made his season debut after being sidelined with a knee injury. He recorded four rebounds and one assist in 13 minutes off the bench.
Justin Martinez covers the Thunder and NBA for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Justin? He can be reached at jmartinez@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at @Justintohoops. Sign up for the Thunder Sports Minute newsletter to access more NBA coverage. Support Justin’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
Thunder vs. Suns
TIPOFF:Â 8:30 p.m. Friday at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City (FanDuel Sports Network)