Not even a second after Lu Dort swished in a much-needed outside bucket, the agonizing sound of a whistle was heard. The bucket was overturned to an offensive foul as he kicked his leg out on Harrison Barnes’ contest. In turn, Victor Wembanyama made an outside bucket. That two-play sequence about summed it up.
The Oklahoma City Thunder had their worst showing of the season in a 130-110 loss to the San Antonio Spurs. For the first time in forever, it felt like they were outdone in their brand of basketball with a suffocating defense and clean ball security.
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Considering most of their roster sat out the first night of their back-to-back, the Thunder had this one circled on their calendar. It makes sense, after all. The Spurs embarrassed them on a national stage just a couple of weeks ago. But they weren’t going to go to their gym and destroy them, either. That was obvious from the jump.
The Thunder were in a 31-29 deficit after the first quarter. Through that opening frame, the paint defense was a bit worrying. I know the Spurs have the ‘Slash Brothers’ moniker, but things were too easy for them when driving to the rim. Chet Holmgren had several San Antonio role players go at him and finish for layups.
That continued the rest of the way. The Thunder scored 31 points in the second frame. They had a 60-58 lead at halftime over the Spurs. Gilgeous-Alexander had 16 points, but Holmgren and Jalen Williams were outplayed by San Antonio’s supporting cast. That turned into a theme in this lopsided contest.
Out of the break, the Thunder offense went into the mud. It’s a bad habit that has plagued them with this iteration. They won an NBA championship despite that flaw, but it’s why they lose most of their regular-season matchups. They only scored 22 points in the third frame. They were in an 87-82 hole afterward.
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Needing a run to stay within it, the opposite happened. The Spurs only needed three minutes before they opened up a double-digit lead. Stephon Castle sliced through OKC’s defense. Harrison Barnes once again came up huge as a shot-maker. And don’t even get me started with Keldon Johnson’s unreal shot-making from the outside.
The Thunder were on the wrong side of a 20-8 run in the fourth quarter. That put this one away quickly, as NBA fans were robbed of a clutch-time showdown. Gilgeous-Alexander tried his best to keep it interesting, but nobody else from OKC’s side joined in on the fun.
Eventually, Johnson hit another outside jumper to put this one away. He yelled at the San Antonio crowd in celebration. As they should. In the first year in forever as a legit contender, they delivered a knockout blow to the reigning NBA champion that previously looked unbeatable.
Afterward, the Thunder waved the white flag. They were outscored 43-28 in the fourth quarter as the Spurs eventually led by as many as 21 points. The final margin might be a bit deceptive, but no doubt about it, San Antonio was the better team once again.
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The Thunder shot 54% from the field and went 12-of-30 (40%) from 3. They shot 6-of-7 on free throws. They had 23 assists on 46 baskets. Four Thunder players scored double-digit points.
Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 33 points and eight assists. Williams finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Dort scored 15 points. Kenrich Williams had 10 points.
Meanwhile, the Spurs shot 57% from the field and went 16-of-36 (44.4%) from 3. They shot 18-of-24 on free throws. They had 34 assists on 48 baskets. Five Spurs players scored double-digit points.
Wembanyama had 12 points and five rebounds off the bench. Johnson exploded for 25 points and five outside makes off the bench. Castle had an efficient 24 points. Barnes delivered with 20 points. Devin Vassell had 17 points and five rebounds.
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Well, looks like we learned our first challenger that could stop the Thunder from going back-to-back. Most didn’t expect the Spurs to be this good, this quickly. But that’s how the NBA works sometimes. Let’s see how the rest of the season plays out. It’s still only December. But San Antonio has played its way to the contender conversation.
For the Thunder, this will be the first time the entire NBA world has questioned their dominance. At least with this matchup. Two losses to the Spurs have shown that they can be beaten in their own style. As a Christmas rematch looms, the stakes have been heightened a bit than your usual holiday game because of the recent history between these two teams.
Let’s look at Thunder player grades:
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: A-plus
Dec 23, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) drives to the basket past San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) and forward Julian Champagnie (30) during the second half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
Going at Julian Champagnie, Gilgeous-Alexander bumped off him and swished in the mid-range jumper at the elbow. Going back and forth with the Spurs, the reigning MVP was ready for this game to come down to the final moments. The rest of the Thunder weren’t, sadly.
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Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 33 points on 14-of-22 shooting, eight assists and three rebounds. He shot 1-of-4 from 3 and went 4-of-5 on free throws.
You can tell this was a game Gilgeous-Alexander looked forward to. And like usual, he did his part to come away with the win. The Spurs couldn’t contain him. The mid-range maestro went to work. He went to his spots at the baseline, in the nail and at the elbow to bury jumpers.
Gilgeous-Alexander drove to the basket and had circus finishes — even with Wembanyama roaming the paint. That’s how special a finisher he is. He shook through traffic and finessed his way to several impossible layups. Anytime the Thunder needed a bucket, he stepped up.
Alas, you can’t win basketball games one on five. Gilgeous-Alexander learned that lesson here. He was the best player on the floor, but the next four were on San Antonio’s side. Those types of odds are impractical to overcome — even if you’re one of the greatest players ever.
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Trying to keep it within a single-digit deficit, Gilgeous-Alexander made the start of the fourth quarter interesting. Eventually, though, the Spurs were able to hit big-time shots down the stretch. The rest of the Thunder couldn’t. That turned this game into a surprising blowout loss. The first of the season for OKC.
Jalen Williams: C-minus
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – DECEMBER 23: Jalen Williams #8 of the Oklahoma City Thunder in action during the second quarter of the game against the San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center on December 23, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Kenneth Richmond/Getty Images)
Trying to make a play happen, Williams’ pass was intercepted. Dylan Harper went the other way and finished through contact for the transition jam. Asked to be OKC’s second-best player, the one-time All-NBA player failed to provide help for his MVP teammate.
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Williams finished with 17 points on 8-of-18 shooting, eight assists and six rebounds. He shot 1-of-4 from 3. He also had two steals.
The jumper continues to betray Williams. Usually running the second unit, he wasn’t able to get into a flow and keep the Thunder above water. Paired with poor dribbling, the Spurs were able to take advantage when Gilgeous-Alexander was off the floor. OKC’s offense deteriorated quickly.
This has felt like a theme in all of OKC’s losses. Gilgeous-Alexander usually does enough to get a win, but the rest of the Thunder don’t. They need Williams to be better in these high-leverage matchups. You can’t get outplayed by Barnes and Johnson. Grace needs to be given, considering his lengthy wrist recovery, but the data is stacking up this season.
While Gilgeous-Alexander has mostly escaped the consequences of playing against Wembanyama, it feels like Williams hasn’t. In both games, there’s been hesitation in his next move with the ball. Anytime he pulls up in the mid-range, it feels like he’s doing it in a packed paint. Being forced to play against San Antonio’s best player in the bench lineup minutes has been a weird perk for the Spurs.
Chet Holmgren: F
Dec 23, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) drives to the basket against Oklahoma City Thunder center Chet Holmgren (7) during the second half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
Raising his arms, Holmgren was in a prime spot to swat away Johnson’s deep paint attempt. Instead, the latter maneuvers his way as he circled the seven-footer by moving his hips. That created enough of an angle of space to bank in the layup. You’re not used to seeing that.
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Holmgren finished with seven points on 3-of-10 shooting, three rebounds and one assist. He shot 1-of-3 from 3. He also had one block.’
Simply not enough. On either end. Holmgren was too hesitant as a scorer. He faded into the background. What makes it worse is that a good chunk of his minutes weren’t even against Wembanyama, as the latter was on the bench to start both halves.
The defense was also troublesome — and arguably even more concerning. It’s one thing for Holmgren’s block numbers to be down because he’s dragged away from the paint. It’s another when he can’t even swat away shots he’s been able to do before thousands of times. Several Spurs players went right at him with zero fear. They were scorching hot inside the paint.
The Thunder won’t win many games with this type of production from Holmgren. Considering their roles, the Spurs had a better bang for their buck from Luke Kornet. His showdown with Wembanyama went from the main event to an afterthought as neither seven-footer really showed out.
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Big-picture-wise, this is the problem with the seven-footer. He disappears too often on the offensive side to the point it’s difficult to remember he’s even on the floor. But to make things worse, the defense was just flat-out bad in this one, too.
Lu Dort: C
Dec 23, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox (4) and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort (5) reach for a loose ball during the first half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
Receiving plenty of catch-and-shoot looks, Dort made the Spurs pay for closing out on Gilgeous-Alexander. In a game filled with duds, his outside shot going through a recent hot streak is one of the few positives. Even with his consequential offensive foul that resulted in a six-point swing.
Dort finished with 15 points. 5-of-8 shooting and two rebounds. All of his attempts were from the outside.
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You take what you can get on outside shots if you’re the Thunder. That’s been a plague for OKC for three seasons now. Even with several awesome defenders, the flip side of the coin has most of them struggling from beyond the perimeter. They were due for some luck in their success rate from the outside.
The Thunder have the NBA’s best defense, but you wouldn’t have been able to tell in this game. Castle made it look too easy on his drives to the basket. He also had several decent looks from the outside that he buried. Johnson was unconscious from deep. Considering OKC’s deep bullpen of perimeter defenders, that can’t happen again.
Giving up 130 points in regulation is their worst showing yet on that end of the floor. The Spurs were simply better on both ends. A Christmas showdown will determine if the Thunder can return to their dominating ways at home — where they remain undefeated this season.
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This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Player grades: Same mistakes for Thunder in 130-110 loss to Spurs