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Jalen Williams lifts OKC Thunder past Trail Blazers with late jumper into tie atop West
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- Jalen Williams lifts OKC Thunder past Trail Blazers with late jumper into tie atop West
The last time the OKC Thunder hosted the Portland Trail Blazers on Jan. 11, Jalen Williams took it easy during the fourth quarter.
He spent every second on the bench with a towel draped over him, chatting with the rest of OKC's starters as his team won by a franchise record 62 points.
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But there would be no downtime during Tuesday's rematch at Paycom Center.
Williams instead spent the closing moments of the fourth quarter with a defender draped over him as he willed the Thunder to a 111-109 home win over the revenge-seeking Trail Blazers .
Tied at 109 with four seconds left in regulation, Williams finally freed himself from the tight coverage by Anfernee Simons .
More: Ranking the OKC Thunder's top 10 wins from the first half of the 2023-24 NBA season
Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) makes the go-ahead a basket over Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons (1) in the finals seconds of OKC's 111-109 win Tuesday night at Paycom Center.
Williams elevated for a mid-range jumper and watched as it found the bottom of the net with two seconds remaining, lifting OKC to a narrow victory.
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"It's a shot I work on a lot," Williams said. "Coach (Mark Daigneault) had faith in me to get to the spot I wanted to get to and make the shot."
It was the shot that mattered most for Williams, who missed plenty of easier looks throughout the night. He finished with 19 points on 9-for-20 shooting from the floor (1 for 3 from deep).
Still, Daigneault drew the final play up for Williams rather than star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander , who finished with a game-high 33 points.
"It's a bigger picture thing," Daigneault said. "We don't want to be a team that's predictable and a team that's easy to prepare for. We want our opponents to have to account for all of our players based on their strengths.
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"Jalen has clearly shown the ability to create his own shot, and so we're willing to use him in those situations."
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Daigneault's decision paid off, as Williams delivered in the biggest moment of the contest.
"Shooters shoot," Williams said. "I shot like trash. It's nice for that to be the shot that goes in."
With the win, the Thunder (30-13) moved into a tie with the Minnesota Timberwolves (30-13) and Denver Nuggets (31-14) atop the Western Conference standings.
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Next up is a road game against the San Antonio Spurs at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Here are three takeaways from the win:
More: Ranking the OKC Thunder's top 10 wins from the first half of the 2023-24 NBA season
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) goes past Portland Trail Blazers center Deandre Ayton (2) during an NBA basketball game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Portland Trail Blazers at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2024.
Portland punches back at full strength
The Trail Blazers were short-handed in their blowout loss to the Thunder earlier this month.
Portland was without players such as DeAndre Ayton (knee) and Malcolm Brogdon (rest) and Jabari Walker . But all three players suited up and started in Tuesday's rematch.
Brogdon and Walker provided key contributions on offense. Brogdon recorded 18 points and seven assists, while Walker chipped in 14 points and 13 rebounds.
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And while Ayton only finished with five points and seven rebounds, he helped limit Chet Holmgren to eight points on 3-for-6 shooting from the floor.
"We knew we were going to have a tough opponent tonight," Daigneault said. "We didn't expect an easy game, and it wasn't. They played really well."
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Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) celebrtes after making the go-ahead basket in the final seconds of an NBA basketball game between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Portland Trail Blazers at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2024. Oklahoma City won 11-109.
Lightning strikes twice (and a few more times) at the free throw line
The crowd at Paycom Center didn't react much as the first of two free throw attempts by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander rimmed out late in the first quarter.
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It happens to the best of them, including Gilgeous-Alexander, who entered the night with the 12th-highest free throw percentage in the league (89.3%).
But as the second attempt by Gilgeous-Alexander swirled around and out of the rim, a collective groan echoed throughout the stadium.
Gilgeous-Alexander wasn't the only OKC player who had some uncharacteristic misses at the line on Tuesday.
Despite entering the game with a league-leading team free throw percentage of 84%, OKC went 10 for 18 (55.6%) from the charity stripe in the first half. Those struggles helped Portland claim a 66-58 lead at the midway point of the game.
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"We obviously just had a hard time finding a rhythm offensively," Daigneault said of the first half. "Some of that was us and some of that was them. … I give our guys credit. I thought we just hung in there mentally."
More: Where is OKC Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in NBA MVP race? Paul Pierce has him No. 1
Chet Holmgren brings the block party
Holmgren waited in the paint like a spider, eager for his prey to enter his wide-reaching web.
That unfortunate victim proved to be Brogdon, who drove into the paint early in the fourth quarter and went up for a layup.
In came Holmgren, who used his 7-foot-6 wingspan to swat the ball away as the crowd at Paycom Center erupted.
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Holmgren feasted on defense all night. He racked up six blocks, including three in the fourth quarter.
Despite only being a rookie, Holmgren continues to establish himself as an elite rim protector. He entered Tuesday's contest with an average of 2.5 blocks per game, which ranks fourth in the NBA.
"It's hard to put into words," Gilgeous-Alexander said of Holmgren's defensive impact. "But he clearly changes and takes us to a whole other level. … Obviously, he does so many things on the court offensively.
"But him, defensively, is his biggest attribute. He brings it every night."
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More: OKC Thunder schedule: How to watch the Thunder in 2023-24 NBA season
Portland to challenge result of the loss
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Tuesday that Portland is filing a protest with the league office to challenge the result of the loss .
The Trail Blazers held a 109-108 lead in the closing seconds when Brogdon got double teamed at halfcourt and picked up his dribble. Portland head coach Chauncey Billups tried to call a timeout but was unable to get the referee's attention.
Portland was then called for a double-dribble, and Billups was assessed two technicals and ejected.
According to NBA rules, Portland must file a written protest within 48 hours of the end of the game. It must also submit a $10,000 check, which will be refunded if the protest is successful.
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Both Portland and OKC would then have five days to submit their evidence. After that, NBA commissioner Adam Silver has five days to issue a ruling.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Jalen Williams lifts OKC Thunder past Trail Blazers into tie atop West
