Game ID: 22300340
Oklahoma City Thunder @ Denver Nuggets
Saturday, December 16, 2023 at 9:00 PM ET
Ball Arena, Denver, CO
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DEN 31 25 31 30 117OKC 27 27 31 33 118
DEN vs OKC ScoutingDEN vs OKC Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
DEN availability going into 12/08 · 1 day's restBACK Murray back 11/29 after 11, 26 min since (79% of 33)
BACK Gordon back 12/02 after 4, 32 min since (99% of 32)
NEW Jackson 21 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 15 to 24 min over the last 4
DEN availability going into 12/11 · 2 days' restBACK Murray back 11/29 after 11, 28 min since (85% of 33)
BACK Gordon back 12/02 after 4, 29 min since (89% of 32)
NEW Jackson 21 to 26 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/12 · back-to-backBACK Murray back 12/06 after 2, 30 min since (92% of 33)
BACK Gordon back 12/02 after 4, 29 min since (89% of 32)
DEN availability going into 12/14 · 1 day's restBACK Murray back 12/06 after 2, 30 min since (92% of 33)
BACK Gordon back 12/02 after 4, 29 min since (91% of 32)
NEW Strawther 11 to 16 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/16 · 1 day's restBACK Murray back 12/06 after 2, 28 min since (86% of 33)
NEW Strawther 11 to 18 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/18 · 1 day's restOUT Caldwell-Pope missed 2 since 12/14, returns tonight: 26 min (82% of 32)
NEW Holiday 15 to 20 min over the last 4
NEW Strawther 11 to 18 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/20 · 1 day's restBACK Caldwell-Pope back 12/18 after 2, 26 min since (82% of 32)
NEW Holiday 15 to 20 min over the last 4
NEW Strawther 11 to 21 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/22 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 2 since 12/18, returns tonight: 6 min (56% of 11)
BACK Caldwell-Pope back 12/18 after 2, 29 min since (91% of 32)
NEW Holiday 15 to 20 min over the last 4
NEW Strawther 11 to 18 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/23 · back-to-backOUT Holiday missed 2 since 12/20, out tonight
BACK Caldwell-Pope back 12/18 after 2, 29 min since (92% of 32)
BACK Jordan back 12/22 after 2, 6 min since (56% of 11)
NEW Strawther 11 to 16 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 12/06 · 3 days' restOUT Micić missed 4 since 11/25, out tonight
OUT Dieng missed 2 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Jal. Williams back 11/28 after 3, 31 min since (96% of 32)
NEW Joe 18 to 24 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 12/08 · 1 day's restOUT Micić missed 5 since 11/25, out tonight
OUT Dieng missed 3 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Jal. Williams back 11/28 after 3, 31 min since (98% of 32)
OKC availability going into 12/11 · 2 days' restOUT Micić missed 6 since 11/25, returns tonight: 16 min (133% of 12)
OUT Dieng missed 4 since 11/30, returns tonight: 26 min (262% of 10)
BACK Jal. Williams back 11/28 after 3, 33 min since (103% of 32)
OKC availability going into 12/14 · 2 days' restBACK Micić back 12/11 after 6, 16 min since (133% of 12)
BACK Dieng back 12/11 after 4, 26 min since (262% of 10)
OKC availability going into 12/16 · 1 day's restBACK Micić back 12/11 after 6, 16 min since (133% of 12)
BACK Dieng back 12/11 after 4, 18 min since (183% of 10)
OKC availability going into 12/18 · 1 day's restOUT Micić missed 2 since 12/14, returns tonight: 7 min (61% of 12)
BACK Dieng back 12/11 after 4, 14 min since (138% of 10)
OKC availability going into 12/21 · 2 days' restBACK Micić back 12/11 after 6, 12 min since (97% of 12)
BACK Dieng back 12/11 after 4, 15 min since (151% of 10)
OKC availability going into 12/23 · 1 day's restBACK Micić back 12/11 after 6, 12 min since (97% of 12)
BACK Dieng back 12/11 after 4, 14 min since (136% of 10)
OKC availability going into 12/26 · 2 days' restOUT Micić missed 2 since 12/21, returns tonight: 16 min (133% of 12)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 111, shooting 46 percent and 39 from three, 24 free throws a game; Murray at 22 and Jokić at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest. OKC comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 123, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 25 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Jal. Williams at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-2 a night and OKC minus-9 and the defense, Denver allowing 111 a night to OKC's 123. Call it Denver 118, OKC 115, OKC keeping it close.
12/08 vs HOU 106-114 — DEN notes
DEN lost 106-114. DEN took 8 more shots (90 to 82), fed by 12 offensive rebounds, but shot 42% to HOU's 43%, 10 of 28 from three, and got to the line 27 times to HOU's 42. Jokić led with 23 (9 of 26, 4 of 7 at the line); Murray added 21, Porter Jr. 20. Q4 was theirs, 32-22, the deficit cut from 18 to 8, but the other 3 periods went 92-74 against them. Caldwell-Pope's -16 in 25 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/11 @ ATL 129-122 — DEN notes
DEN won 129-122. DEN shot 53% (47 of 88) to ATL's 46%, 12 of 29 from three, and went to the line 29 times to ATL's 18 — 23 points from the stripe to their 17. DEN turned it over 16 times to ATL's 10, and ATL turned those into 9 steals. The glass went 49-35 for them. J. Murray led with 29 (12 of 15, 4 of 5 from three); Jokić added 25, Strawther 22. The hinge was Q3, 38-24: a lead of 3 became 17, and the lead reached 20. J. Murray was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
12/12 @ CHI 114-106 — DEN notes
DEN won 114-106. DEN shot 47% (39 of 83) to CHI's 42%, 14 of 30 from three, and went to the line 32 times to CHI's 23 — 22 points from the stripe to their 21. Jackson led with 25 (9 of 16, 5 of 8 from three); Porter Jr. added 17, Strawther 16. The hinge was Q1, 32-25: from level to 7 ahead, and the lead reached 16. Jackson was the night's best plus/minus at +13.
12/14 vs BKN 124-101 — DEN notes
DEN won 124-101. DEN shot 47% (47 of 99) to BKN's 41%, 12 of 36 from three. DEN turned it over 8 times to BKN's 16. Jokić led with 26 (8 of 12, 10 of 12 at the line); Watson added 18, Murray 16. The hinge was Q3, 38-28: a lead of 13 became 23, and the lead reached 28. Jokić was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
12/16 vs OKC 117-118 — DEN notes
DEN lost 117-118. DEN took 9 more shots (93 to 84), fed by 16 offensive rebounds, but shot 45% to OKC's 51%, 12 of 32 from three, and got to the line 24 times to OKC's 30. Jokić led with 24 (8 of 15, 7 of 8 at the line); Porter Jr. added 20, Gordon 16. Q1 was theirs, 31-27, but the other 3 periods went 91-86 against them. They led by as many as 11. Jokić's -9 in 37 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/18 vs DAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 112, shooting 47 percent and 39 from three, 27 free throws a game; Jokić at 20 and Murray at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Caldwell-Pope (2 straight). One day's rest. Dallas comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 118, shooting 50 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Dončić at 36 and Hardaway Jr. at 22 a game. Without Irving (4 straight), Green (7 straight), Kleber (17 straight). One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-4 a night and Dallas minus-3 and the line, where Denver takes 27 free throws a game to Dallas's 20. Call it Denver 118, Dallas 115, Dallas keeping it close.
12/20 @ TOR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Toronto comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 121, shooting 52 percent and 34 from three, 24 free throws a game; Barnes at 25 and Siakam at 24 a game. Without Freeman-Liberty (24 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 110, shooting 50 percent and 42 from three, 26 free throws a game; Murray at 20 and Jokić at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Denver at 42 percent from three to Toronto's 34 and the defense, Denver allowing 110 a night to Toronto's 121. Call it Denver 117, Toronto 115, Toronto keeping it close.
12/22 @ BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Brooklyn comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 121, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 19 free throws a game; Thomas at 26 and Bridges at 15 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Simmons (20 straight), Smith Jr. (7 straight), Walker IV (9 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 107, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 21 free throws a game; Jokić at 19 and Murray at 18 a game. One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Denver allowing 107 a night to Brooklyn's 121 and the glass, where Denver has been plus-3 a night and Brooklyn minus-6. Call it Denver 116, Brooklyn 112, Brooklyn keeping it close.
12/23 @ CHA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Charlotte comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 101 a night and allowing 124, shooting 45 percent and 28 from three, 15 free throws a game; Rozier at 22 and Bridges at 18 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. Without Ball (11 straight), Martin (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 109, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 20 free throws a game; Jokić at 24 and Murray at 21 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Denver wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Denver at 40 percent from three to Charlotte's 28 and the glass, where Denver has been plus-1 a night and Charlotte minus-10. Call it Denver 118, Charlotte 110.
12/06 @ HOU 101-110 — OKC notes
OKC lost 101-110. OKC shot 43% (37 of 87) to HOU's 48%, 8 of 29 from three. OKC turned it over 8 times to HOU's 19. The glass went 30-53 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 33 (13 of 18, 7 of 9 at the line); Jal. Williams added 13, Wiggins 11. Q2 was theirs, 28-23, the deficit cut from 10 to 5, but the other 3 periods went 87-73 against them. Dort's -27 in 15 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/08 vs GSW 138-136 — OKC notes
OKC won 138-136 in 1 overtime. OKC shot 52% (51 of 98) to GSW's 47%, 5 of 29 from three, and went to the line 36 times to GSW's 23 — 31 points from the stripe to their 19. OKC turned it over 9 times to GSW's 28. The glass went 39-60 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 38 (15 of 30, 0 of 3 from three, 8 of 11 at the line); Jal. Williams added 28, Holmgren 21. The hinge was Q3, 33-22: OKC came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 5. OKC trailed 56-62 at the half and won the second half 82-74. Joe was the night's best plus/minus at +28.
12/11 vs UTA 134-120 — OKC notes
OKC won 134-120. OKC shot 52% (50 of 96) to UTA's 48%, 18 of 38 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 30 (12 of 17, 6 of 6 at the line); Dieng added 18, Holmgren 16. The hinge was Q3, 45-23: a lead of 14 became 36. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +35.
12/14 @ SAC 123-128 — OKC notes
OKC lost 123-128. OKC shot 43% (44 of 102) to SAC's 49%, 11 of 36 from three, and went to the line 27 times to SAC's 21 — 24 points from the stripe to their 16. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 43 (13 of 27, 1 of 5 from three, 16 of 18 at the line); Giddey added 18, Dort 17. Q4 was theirs, 31-28, the deficit cut from 8 to 5, but the other 3 periods went 100-92 against them. Wallace's -18 in 19 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/16 @ DEN 118-117 — OKC notes
OKC won 118-117. OKC shot 51% (43 of 84) to DEN's 45%, 7 of 21 from three, and went to the line 30 times to DEN's 24 — 25 points from the stripe to their 21. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 25 (9 of 20, 7 of 8 at the line); Jal. Williams added 24, Holmgren 17. The hinge was Q4, 33-30: OKC came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 1. OKC trailed 54-56 at the half and won the second half 64-61. Joe was the night's best plus/minus at +12.
12/18 vs MEM — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 122, shooting 48 percent and 32 from three, 27 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 34 and Jal. Williams at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 11 a night. One day's rest. Memphis comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 114, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Jackson Jr. at 30 and Bane at 30 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. Without Morant (24 straight), Smart (13 straight), Jackson (9 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the line, where OKC takes 27 free throws a game to Memphis's 20 and the defense, Memphis allowing 114 a night to OKC's 122. Call it OKC 119, Memphis 110.
12/21 vs LAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 120, shooting 49 percent and 32 from three, 27 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Holmgren at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. 2 days' rest. The Clippers come in 5-0 over their last five, scoring 131 a night and allowing 114, shooting 55 percent and 43 from three, 27 free throws a game; Leonard at 30 and Harden at 21 a game. That is 5 straight wins. They have won the glass by 6 a night. Without Tucker (11 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the glass, where the Clippers have been plus-6 a night and OKC minus-5 and the arc, the Clippers at 43 percent from three to OKC's 32. Call it OKC 120, the Clippers 118, the Clippers keeping it close.
12/23 vs LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 115, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 23 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Holmgren at 17 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest. The Lakers come in 1-4 over their last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 121, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 19 free throws a game; Davis at 30 and James at 24 a game. That is 4 straight losses. They have lost the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it OKC 121, the Lakers 113.
12/26 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 117, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 23 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Holmgren at 18 a game. 2 days' rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 111, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 20 free throws a game; Edwards at 31 and Towns at 26 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, Minnesota at 41 percent from three to OKC's 35 and the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 14 times a game to OKC's 11. Call it OKC 116, Minnesota 114, Minnesota keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
OKCAW A. Wiggins
CH C. Holmgren
CW C. Wallace
IJ I. Joe
JG J. Giddey
JW J. Williams
JW Jal. Williams
JW Jay. Williams
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
OD O. Dieng
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
DENAG A. Gordon
CB C. Braun
DJ D. Jordan
JH J. Holiday
JM J. Murray
JS J. Strawther
JO Jokic
MP M. Porter Jr.
NJ N. Jokić
PW P. Watson
RJ R. Jackson
OKC/DEN the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Gilgeous-Alexander makes winning jumper with a second left as Thunder edge Nuggets 118-117
DENVER -- — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit a turnaround jumper with a second left, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied to beat the Denver Nuggets 118-117 on Saturday night.
Jalen Williams scored 24 points and rookie Chet Holmgren had 17 points, 11 rebounds and a career-best nine blocks for the Thunder. His previous high in blocks was seven, which came against Cleveland in his second NBA game.
“If I didn’t let Jamal Murray dunk on me in the first quarter I would have gotten the 10,” Holmgren said.
Nikola Jokic had 24 points and 12 assists and Michael Porter Jr . scored 20 points, but it wasn’t enough for the Nuggets, who played without guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (concussion protocol).
Denver had its three-game winning streak snapped and lost for just the second time in 12 home games, both of which have come in the last three games at Ball Arena.
“I’m disappointed,” coach Michael Malone said. “That’s a game we should have won. If we take care of the ball and we get a few stops, we win that game.”
The Nuggets led 111-103 with 3:33 left but a 9-2 run, capped by an alley-oop dunk by Holmgren, made it a one-point game with 1:38 remaining.
Porter hit a 20-footer, Gilgeous-Alexander made two free throws and Murray’s step-back jumper gave Denver a 117-114 lead with 43 seconds left.
Williams made a driving layup, Jokic missed a 3-pointer, Gilgeous-Alexander grabbed the rebound with 8 seconds left and then capped the rally with his turnaround jumper over Peyton Watson . The Nuggets’ entry pass was tipped to seal the win.
“I tried not to race the ball up the floor too fast, tried to take a little time off the clock and shoot at the last second,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of the last play. “I just tried to get to something that I shot many times, something I was comfortable shooting.”
Denver won the first meeting by 33 points in Oklahoma City on Oct. 29. Gilgeous-Alexander, who had 43 points in a loss at Sacramento on Thursday night, scored a season-low seven points in that game and was held to seven in the first half Saturday night. He scored 11 points in the fourth quarter.
Murray finished with 15 points and Christian Braun had 14 for the Nuggets.
UP NEXT
Thunder: Host the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday night.
Nuggets: Host the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night.