Jan. 24, 2026, 12:13 a.m. CT
OKLAHOMA CITY — Curling off of Jaylin Williams’ screen, Isaiah Joe sprinted to the left corner. As Aaron Nesmith had a tight contest, the 26-year-old couldn’t knock down the outside look to force overtime. The inbounds play was the reigning NBA champions’ last chance to avoid an upset to one of the worst teams.
The Oklahoma City Thunder fell in a 117-114 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Juggling injuries all season, things finally crumbled a bit as they were bested by a bottom-feeder in an NBA Finals rematch.
Dealing with a bad hand from the injury randomizer isn’t anything new for the Thunder. They’ve dealt with it over the last two seasons. Now worse than ever before. Despite that, they’ve managed to overcome those obstacles on their way to plenty of wins.
The working theory was that as long as you had Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, any other four-man combination would do. Well, you saw that theory stretched to its limits in this one. The Pacers got up big pretty early in this one. The Thunder were in a 39-28 deficit after the first quarter.
Even with over half of your roster out, that’s a little surprising. Especially to a team fighting for lottery odds the rest of the way. The Thunder spent the rest of the night in a failed attempt at playing catch-up on the scoreboard. Pascal Siakam drove for a layup to push Indiana’s lead to 49-32 with a little over seven minutes left in the second frame.
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Anytime one of Gilgeous-Alexander or Chet Holmgren was off the floor, you compensated for one end of the floor. If the former was out, the offense would fall apart without a real ball-handler. If the latter was out, OKC’s defense was sliced through with Indiana’s role players getting to the rim.
Eventually, though, the Thunder snapped back into it. They went on a 14-2 run to make it a competitive game. The defense was amped back up to a league-best level. The Thunder had 25 points in the second quarter. They were in a manageable 58-53 deficit at the halftime break.
Coming out of the break, the rest of the game was frustratingly predictable. The Thunder would make a run and then the Pacers would hit on timely buckets. Andrew Nembhard graduated into an unreal shot-maker as soon as he set foot in OKC.
The Thunder had to dominate the minutes that Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren were on the floor. The two probable All-Star players were better than anybody on the Pacers’ side. Instead, they only marginally had their head above water. That’s not reading like a game script of a 17-point comeback.
Eventually, Jarace Walker put the Pacers up 82-71 with four minutes left in the third frame. The Indiana role player has struggled to find consistent minutes in his career, but that was difficult to believe as he relentlessly attacked the basket.
The Thunder responded with eight straight points. Mostly fueled by Gilgeous-Alexander going supernova. They had 32 points in the third frame — the same number of points the reigning MVP had at that juncture of the game. If short-handed OKC was going to scrap back into it, it’d be because of him.
In an 89-85 deficit, the Thunder had enough time to make a comeback in the fourth quarter. Gilgeous-Alexander was even on the floor to start. Unfortunately, a series of calls from the officiating crew took over as the main storyline as a weather-tested OKC crowd berated a sequence of fouls and non-fouls they deemed unjust.
Anytime the Thunder got it within a possession, the Pacers answered back on the other end. Like waving a Benjamin in front of someone’s face just to yank it away at the last second. With under four minutes left, Holmgren knocked down a humongous catch-and-shoot outside look to make it a 107-102 game.
That had the OKC crowd energized. At least the ones that were left. Alas, that only lasted for one possession. Micah Potter — of all people — calmly swished in a corner 3-pointer on the other end as the Thunder’s defense was clueless on whose assignment he was.
That popped the balloon for most folks. A couple of possessions later, Nembhard drilled in a stepback 3-pointer that felt like the dagger. Down. 113-103 with two minutes to go, the Thunder needed a series of miracle possessions to get a chance to tie it up or hit the go-ahead bucket.
Let’s just say the Thunder almost pulled a Houdini. They scored nine straight points as they slowly chipped away. Stop. Score. Stop. Score. Flirting with a 50-ball, Gilgeous-Alexander was determined to win this game one-on-five if needed.
Down 113-112 in the final 24 seconds, both teams resorted to the foul game. From Indiana’s side, it was about refusing to give OKC a chance to score from the field. For OKC’s side, it was about preserving its one-in-a-million shot to come back.
After Walker made a pair of free throws, the Thunder had one last chance to tie it up. Down three points with six seconds left, they went with Joe on the corner attempt. He came up short. That was that. They scored 29 points in the final frame but were never able to grab the lead at all in the second half.
The Thunder shot 49% from the field and went 7-of-26 (26.9%) from 3. They shot 27-of-30 on free throws. They had 18 assists on 40 baskets. Four Thunder players scored double-digit points.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s unreal 47 points went in vain. Holmgren showed out with 25 points and 13 rebounds. Kenrich Williams had 12 points and seven rebounds. Cason Wallace tallied 10 points and five rebounds.
Meanwhile, the Pacers shot 47% from the field and went 16-of-38 (42.1%) from 3. They shot 11-of-20 on free throws. They had 34 assists on 45 baskets. Five Pacers players scored double-digit points.
Nembhard finished with an unreal 27 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. Walker had 26 points and four rebounds. Siakam tallied 21 points and six rebounds. Nesmith finished with 17 points and five assists. Potter had a 10-point and 10-rebound double-double.
Just a bad loss for the Thunder. Even with the number of players out. Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren did enough to get the win, but the rest of the cast provided very little help. Guess that’s what happens when you’re relying on the end of the bench. That said, the Pacers are one of the worst teams in the league. You can’t slip up like this.
The Thunder’s supporting cast spoiled Gilgeous-Alexander’s unreal 47 points. Even when he was a one-man scoring machine, you can only do so much as an individual in a game played by 10 on the floor. Reinforcements need to arrive sooner rather than later. This is a very taxing style of basketball.
Let’s look at Thunder player grades:
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: A-plus
Getting past Nembhard with ease, Gilgeous-Alexander went with the up-and-under move to finish through traffic for the driving layup in the final seconds. The bucket was the last of a monstrous outing that should’ve resulted in a win. And a game where OKC should’ve lived or died with the ball in his hands.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 47 points on 17-of-28 shooting, four assists and four rebounds. He shot 1-of-4 from 3 and went 12-of-12 on free throws. He also had a steal and a block.
Well, if there was ever a game for Gilgeous-Alexander to empty the tank, it’s this one. The Thunder didn’t have any other viable on-ball scorer. Jalen Williams remains out. Ajay Mitchell and Aaron Wiggins also joined him as guys out. That was painfully obvious in this game.
When Gilgeous-Alexander was on the floor, the offense flowed fine. Off, though, yeesh. Not enough Jaylin Williams DHO handoffs could solve things. Those elements crafted a game where you saw the 30-point machine leave it all on the floor as a high-volume scorer.
The Pacers had no way to stop Gilgeous-Alexander. He knifed through their defense to get several looks. When that didn’t happen, he got to his mid-range spots without any problem at the elbow and baseline. Indiana had to resort to fouling him as he was relentless at putting his head down and barreling towards the rim.
Nembhard has had some success over the years — better than most, at least — but it didn’t matter. Gilgeous-Alexander was in the zone. He put up 29 points in the second half. He had 15 in the fourth quarter as he tried to play Superman and drag OKC to the finish line.
Instead, Gilgeous-Alexander painted a masterpiece that ended up in waste. He almost proved that you could win an NBA game with one high-end scorer. The short-handed Thunder couldn’t prop up enough help to make sure this performance stole headlines for the right reasons.
And then there was the final possession. In a vacuum, Joe’s outside look was fine. The sharpshooter knocks that down in his sleep. But I feel like the ball should’ve been in Gilgeous-Alexander’s hands. Even if Indiana immediately doubles and refuses to concede a one-on-one perimeter look. Let the reigning MVP decide what to do next from there.
That’s happened a couple of times in the final possession of close games. The Thunder have struggled to let Gilgeous-Alexander decide the final result. Even when he takes over fourth quarters like he did tonight. The Pacers failed to prove they couldn’t stop him. So no reason to bail them out.
Chet Holmgren: A-plus
Navigating his teammates to their spots, Holmgren roamed in the paint. As Siakam was about to get an easy reverse layup, the 23-year-old helped enough to emphatically swat the shot away. The Thunder had their two probable All-Star players show out.
Holmgren finished with 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting, 13 rebounds and three assists. He shot 2-of-4 from 3 and went 7-of-8 on free throws. He also had three blocks.
Needing to size up as a scorer, Holmgren continues to be one of the NBA’s most efficient scorers. With several scoring possessions up for grabs, he showed off some of his self-creation skills. On the opening possession, he went straight at Siakam to score the turnaround fadeaway jumper that resembled Dirk’s.
Several of his buckets looked like that. Without a playmaker, there were no easy looks to get. Holmgren consistently put the ball down and drove straight to the basket. If not that, he’d get the ball at the high post and go to work. A few jab steps and turnaround moves resulted in finger-roll layups.
It’s probably one of Holmgren’s most impressive games as a scorer. He kept his superb efficiency despite the difficulty of his buckets increasing. You even saw the seven-footer swish in a methodical stepback 3-pointer. It’s a shame all this happened in a loss.
On the other end, Holmgren continued to build up his Defensive Player of the Year case. When he was on the floor, the Pacers’ driving lanes were erased. Most refused to go right at the rim. It feels inevitable that he’ll eventually lead the league in blocks. When he was off it, though, that’s where Indiana ran away on the scoreboard.
Say what you want about this loss, but you can’t deliver a single slice of blame piece to OKC’s two best players. Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren did enough to cruise to an easy win. I mean, they combined for freaking 72 points as a duo. It was the rest of the group that failed to provide any help.
Kenrich Williams: B
Catching the ball at the perimeter, Williams drove right at Siakam. He pulled up with a fadeaway mid-range jumper that rattled in. In the final seconds of the first half, the 31-year-old provided a much-needed bucket in a game where the Thunder were still in.
Williams finished with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, seven rebounds and four assists. He shot 0-of-2 from 3 and went 2-of-3 on free throws. He also had a steal and a block.
I know I said that nobody besides OKC’s best two players did enough to get a win, but let me retract that a little. Williams was once again awesome. At least as a scorer. He was able to flex some of his one-on-one skills with several mid-range buckets. They desperately needed that offensive juice.
The Thunder have dealt with injuries all season. But it feels like we’ve hit rock bottom in that year-long battle in this recent stretch. Now, it’s cost OKC a game. That said, though, Williams has shown he can seamlessly step up when asked to. It’s the type of depth you spend years creating.
Hopefully, this stretch has garnered Williams more rotation minutes once the Thunder get closer to full health. That has been one of OKC’s biggest mysteries since they ascended to an NBA champion. How they can’t seem to carve out a role for the veteran when he’s always added positive minutes.
Cason Wallace: C-minus
Closing out on Nembhard, Wallace couldn’t stay side-by-side. Instead, Indiana’s top scorer easily blew by him and muscled his way through Branden Carlson for the driving layup. Needing to be a shutout defense considering its lackluster offensive firepower, the 22-year-old couldn’t help in that regard.
Wallace finished with 10 points on 3-of-7 shooting, five rebounds and one assist. He shot 3-of-4 from 3 and went 1-of-2 on free throws. He also had two steals.
We can start with a glass-half-full approach. The scoring was awesome. Especially the outside shooting. Wallace has struggled in that department this season. The Thunder needed others to step up as scorers. He somewhat achieved that.
The defense, though. That needed to be sharper. You can’t let Nembhard almost drop an efficient 30 points. Too often, Wallace and others saw several Pacers players get to the basket without any real deterrence. You can’t let that happen or you risk your entire infrastructure falling apart on that end of the floor.
The Thunder built out their roster with the ambition to be a defensive-first team. Obviously, it worked out last season. They brought home an NBA championship because that side of the ball was there every night. And while they remain the league’s top defense this year, you’re seeing more leakages than usual recently.
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