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'Weren’t as sharp': OKC Thunder falls short vs. LeBron James, Lakers to open road trip
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- 'Weren’t as sharp': OKC Thunder falls short vs. LeBron James, Lakers to open road trip
LOS ANGELES — It didn't come down to a single possession. But a single sequence defined Monday night about as well as any.
With just over a minute left in Oklahoma City's 112-105 loss — moments after the Lakers' length forced another Thunder miss — LeBron James outlined a lethal possession. When the first screen approached to detach Thunder wing Lu Dort from James, he wrestled it away like an annoyed little brother. The second screen trapped Shai Gilgeous-Alexander behind the play, thrust backward by the chest and out of the play.
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James sped downhill, dishing the ball to the dunker spot before wrapping OKC's lone shot blocker in his arms. Anthony Davis ended the night with an emphatic reminder of what the Thunder endured all game long — an in-your-grill, rim-hanging display of physicality.
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Jan 15, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) drives past Oklahoma City Thunder forward Ousmane Dieng (13) in the first half against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
The kind of toughness that allowed Los Angeles 64 points in the paint. Davis finished with 27 points and 15 boards. His lengthy Lakers kept the Thunder from mirroring that interior presence.
From Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's hypnotizing burst to the surrounding nucleus of cutters and rim threats, OKC has made a living inside; It entered the game third in the league in points in the paint. The Lakers evicted the Thunder from the place it knows best Monday.
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They outscored the Thunder by 20 points in the paint. Between a pesky zone, Davis' rim deterrence and the constant flex of its muscles, LA forced OKC further into its affinity for the 3-ball.
OKC made just 15 of its 49 3-point attempts — good enough for 31.3%. It took just 39 shots in the paint.
"I thought we got some decent ones," coach Mark Daigneault said when asked about 3-point attempts. "But it's more about the way we play and whether or not that yields efficient shots. I thought we left something to be desired there tonight on a lot of possessions."
The Thunder didn't need to be greeted by any box score postgame to remind itself where things went wrong. Its final reminder flew three feet above ground, elbows out, right before its face.
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More: OKC Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads way in win over Magic
In the zone
This Thunder team isn't a stranger to facing zones this season.
Not since the fateful game in Minnesota that birthed future defensive schemes against Josh Giddey . Other teams have tried it since. Miami , which is known for it anyway, did damage in small spurts. LA did the same Monday and threw a thorn in the Thunder's side.
OKC seemed to ponder the Lakers ' length in ways it hadn't been forced to all season. The team seemed befuddled at times. It sunk into more bad habits than Steve Lacy. It chucked 3 after 3 while the Lakers dared it to win another way.
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"Weren't as sharp with our attacks tonight," Daigneault said. "But we weren't as sharp with really anything tonight."
LA's size is one issue. Its zone is another. Some adequate combination of both can be argued as a matchup problem for this version of the Thunder. The identity it's built hasn't buried it too often. It's developed too much shot creation, houses too talented of an initiator in SGA and has shown the defensive capabilities to make up for it on off nights.
Part of its identity just felt missing. Aaron Wiggins , who picked up a DNP, is one of the team's better cutters. The guys that played didn't exactly make that part of the game easier. OKC has its ways to shoot itself out zones like Los Angeles' on Monday. What happens when its identity works against it?
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SGA can't stay away
After a collision midway through the Thunder's Saturday win over the Magic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was listed as questionable leading up to tipoff on Monday with a right knee injury.
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Gilgeous-Alexander chose to play, tallying 24 points 9-for-19 shooting, three rebounds and six assists. The Thunder guard has been OKC's lifeline. In sickness, in health. During times of possible identity crisis, when the team has had exactly what it's needed. So much so that his Monday performance didn't feel standard.
Surely there were various factors involved — the lingering injury, OKC's thing for 3s (SGA went 1 for 5 from deep), the Lakers' excessive double teams. Gilgeous-Alexander hasn't had many off nights. And when he has, his version of off is Monday night, an in-rhythm display of relatively normal shotmaking that just craves a couple more buckets.
Perhaps his greatest tool, though, has been his health. Even on the front end of a back-to-back, Gilgeous-Alexander played in his 38th game of the season Monday. He's missed just one game.
The Thunder hasn't been faced with many decisions like it'll have Tuesday. The Thunder will take on the Clippers — owners of the West's fourth best record — on the second night of a back-to-back. While unlikely based on his track record this season and the circumstances, whether or not OKC chooses to be cautious with SGA will be something to watch.
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More: With rotation questions, what is Aaron Wiggins' past, present, future with OKC Thunder?
Thunder tip-ins
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Chet Holmgren set a new Thunder rookie record with 98 blocks in a season surpassing Serge Ibaka. Holmgren did it in 39 games. Holmgren finished Monday night with three blocks.
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Monday marked Jalen Williams ' 14th game with at least 20 points this season. He finished with 25 points, three rebounds and six assists.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Thunder falls short vs. LeBron James, Lakers to open road trip
