PORTLAND, OR — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander pointed at the exit after sinking a 17-footer in the closing seconds.
It was almost as if he was telling fans at Moda Center to head home, and they listened. By the time the final buzzer sounded, solidifying the Thunder’s 123-115 win over the Trail Blazers on Sunday, the stands were at half capacity.
Gilgeous-Alexander delivered a show-stopping performance for the Thunder (20-1). He finished with 26 points including his late bucket, which helped put away a pesky Portland team that led at both halftime and the end of the third quarter.
“We never take a win for granted,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said of his team. “Every game presents different challenges. Tonight, it was generating our own energy, fighting through kind of a muddy start and staying with the game even though it wasn’t a perfect game.”
Here are three takeaways from the win:
Order new book on Thunder’s run to NBA title
What goes up must come down for Isaiah Joe
Gilgeous-Alexander arguably has the strongest gravitational pull in the NBA.
The superstar guard attracts defenders every time he touches the basketball, and that was the case once again late in the first quarter. Gilgeous-Alexander drove into the lane, where he was met by a trio of black-and-teal jerseys.
But Gilgeous-Alexander kicked the ball out to Isaiah Joe, who has a different form of gravity. A pull so powerful that nearly all of his 3-pointers seem to go down.
Sure enough, Joe released a shot from the corner that fell through the rim. It marked his third made 3-pointer in just four tries throughout a span of only three minutes.
Joe finished with 15 points and four rebounds. The 26-year-old guard went 4 for 8 from the field (3 for 6 from deep).
Joe’s ability to catch fire as soon as his number gets called isn’t lost on his teammates, especially Jalen Williams. He’s still trying to find a shooting rhythm of his own after missing OKC’s first 19 games due to a nagging right shooting wrist injury.
“I think me not playing was when I really started to understand that his job is extremely hard, to be expected to come in and make shots right away,” Williams said. “Just being able to come in and hit big shots whenever it’s needed is a big deal. It’s something that we take for granted but we also really appreciate.”
Portland won the possession battle in the first half
Chet Holmgren had already beaten the man in front of him. All it took was a pump fake and a drive to get Yang Hansen off-balance early in the second quarter.
But the guy behind Holmgren was far from defeated.
That was Kris Murray, who rushed over and poked the ball away before Holmgren could attempt a shot. Portland then launched a fastbreak, and Shaedon Sharpe finished on the other end with a layup.
Despite being the overwhelming underdog, Portland held a 55-54 lead over OKC at halftime. And it did so by winning the possession battle.
The Trail Blazers attempted six more shots by committing fewer turnovers (8-7) and dominating in the offensive rebounding department (7-2).
Jalen Williams was active early and often
Tiago Splitter was half-joking when asked before the game about Williams, who Portland was set to face for the first time this season.
“Another guy who can easily score 30 or 40 (points),” the Trail Blazers head coach said. “Hopefully he’s still out of rhythm or not at his highest.”
Williams didn’t end up going off for 30 or 40 points. He only scored 16 of them on 7-for-18 shooting from the field (38.9%) in what marked his second outing of the season.
But much to the disappointment of Splitter and the Trail Blazers, it didn’t hold Williams back from impacting the game. The All-NBA forward still racked up eight rebounds, five assists and three blocks in 34 minutes.
Williams applied pressure at the rim with drives before either finishing a layup or kicking it out to an open man. He was active on defense, deflecting passes and roaming the rim to contest shots. And he didn’t force his shot, which still showed signs of rust.
All of those contributions could especially be seen in the fourth quarter, as Williams helped OKC secure the narrow win. He recorded six points, three rebounds and two assists in the final frame.
Tip-insGilgeous-Alexander has scored at least 20 points in 93 consecutive regular-season games, which is the second-longest streak in NBA history. He only trails Wilt Chamberlain (126 games).Alex Caruso was a late scratch for Sunday’s game due to right quad soreness. OKC was also without Isaiah Hartenstein (right soleus calf strain), Thomas Sorber (right ACL surgery recovery) and Nikola Topić (surgery recovery).OKC is just the fourth team in NBA history to start a season 20-1 or better. It joins the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors, 1993-94 Houston Rockets and 1969-70 New York Knicks.Portland’s Deni Avdija recorded a triple-double in the loss. He tallied 31 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists.
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 at Warriors
TIPOFF: 10 p.m. Tuesday at Chase Center in San Francisco (NBC)