Game ID: 22300884
Oklahoma City Thunder @ Los Angeles Lakers
Monday, March 4, 2024 at 10:30 PM ET
Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
LAL 25 27 37 27 116OKC 25 18 29 32 104
LAL vs OKC ScoutingLAL 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.
LAL availability going into 2/25 · 1 day's restOUT Reddish missed 13 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Vanderbilt missed 8 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 30 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 2 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK James back 2/23 after 2, 34 min since (96% of 36)
BACK Christie back 2/22 after 3, 21 min since (149% of 14)
NEW Hachimura 27 to 33 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 2/28 · 2 days' restOUT Reddish missed 14 since 1/25, returns tonight: 20 min (96% of 20)
OUT Vanderbilt missed 9 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 31 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 3 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK James back 2/23 after 2, 36 min since (100% of 36)
BACK Christie back 2/22 after 3, 16 min since (112% of 14)
LAL availability going into 2/29 · back-to-backOUT Vanderbilt missed 10 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 32 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 4 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK James back 2/23 after 2, 36 min since (101% of 36)
BACK Reddish back 2/28 after 14, 20 min since (96% of 20)
BACK Christie back 2/22 after 3, 12 min since (84% of 14)
LAL availability going into 3/02 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 11 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 33 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 5 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK James back 2/23 after 2, 37 min since (103% of 36)
BACK Reddish back 2/28 after 14, 12 min since (58% of 20)
BACK Christie back 2/22 after 3, 11 min since (79% of 14)
LAL availability going into 3/04 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 12 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 34 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 6 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK James back 2/23 after 2, 37 min since (103% of 36)
BACK Reddish back 2/28 after 14, 14 min since (69% of 20)
LAL availability going into 3/06 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 13 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 35 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 7 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Reddish back 2/28 after 14, 14 min since (68% of 20)
LAL availability going into 3/08 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 14 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 36 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 8 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Reddish back 2/28 after 14, 14 min since (68% of 20)
LAL availability going into 3/10 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 15 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 37 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 9 since 2/22, out tonight
NEW Hachimura 27 to 33 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 3/13 · 2 days' restOUT Vanderbilt missed 16 since 2/03, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 38 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Wood missed 10 since 2/22, out tonight
OKC availability going into 2/25 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 2 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Joe back 2/10 after 4, 17 min since (93% of 18)
OKC availability going into 2/27 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 3 since 2/22, out tonight
OKC availability going into 2/29 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 4 since 2/22, out tonight
OKC availability going into 3/03 · 2 days' restOUT Dieng missed 5 since 2/22, out tonight
OKC availability going into 3/04 · back-to-backOUT Dieng missed 6 since 2/22, out tonight
OKC availability going into 3/06 · 1 day's restOUT Jay. Williams missed 2 since 3/03, out tonight
OUT Dieng missed 7 since 2/22, out tonight
OKC availability going into 3/08 · 1 day's restOUT Jay. Williams missed 3 since 3/03, returns tonight: 17 min (132% of 13)
OUT Dieng missed 8 since 2/22, out tonight
OKC availability going into 3/10 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 9 since 2/22, returns tonight: 12 min (119% of 10)
BACK Jay. Williams back 3/08 after 3, 17 min since (132% of 13)
OKC availability going into 3/12 · 1 day's restBACK Jay. Williams back 3/08 after 3, 15 min since (115% of 13)
BACK Dieng back 3/10 after 9, 12 min since (119% of 10)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 122, shooting 53 percent and 40 from three, 14 free throws a game; James at 30 and Davis at 25 a game. They have lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Vanderbilt (12 straight), Vincent (34 straight), Wood (6 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 111, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Holmgren at 22 a game. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, OKC allowing 111 a night to the Lakers' 122 and the glass, where OKC has been plus-1 a night and the Lakers minus-6. Call it OKC 119, the Lakers 117, the Lakers keeping it close.
2/25 @ PHX 113-123 — LAL notes
LAL lost 113-123. LAL shot 52% (47 of 90) to PHX's 47%, 15 of 35 from three, and got to the line 8 times to PHX's 19. The glass went 34-51 against them. James led with 28 (12 of 19, 3 of 6 from three); Davis added 22, Russell 20. Q2 was theirs, 35-27, the deficit cut from 17 to 9, but the other 3 periods went 96-78 against them. Prince's -13 in 27 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/28 @ LAC 116-112 — LAL notes
LAL won 116-112. LAL shot 55% (47 of 86) to LAC's 51%, 14 of 36 from three, and got to the line 10 times to LAC's 16. James led with 34 (13 of 21, 7 of 12 from three); Davis added 20, Russell 18. The hinge was Q4, 39-16: LAL came in trailing by 19 and left it ahead by 4. LAL trailed 52-66 at the half and won the second half 64-46. James was the night's best plus/minus at +11.
2/29 vs WAS 134-131 — LAL notes
LAL won 134-131 in 1 overtime. LAL shot 52% (53 of 101) to WAS's 51%, 8 of 23 from three, and went to the line 24 times to WAS's 12 — 20 points from the stripe to their 10. A. Davis led with 40 (14 of 22, 12 of 13 at the line); James added 31, Russell 22. The hinge was Q2, 39-35: LAL came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 1.
3/02 vs DEN 114-124 — LAL notes
LAL lost 114-124. LAL shot 53% (47 of 89) to DEN's 59%, 12 of 29 from three. The glass went 31-47 against them. James led with 26 (12 of 20, 2 of 5 from three); Hachimura added 23, Reaves 19. Q1 was theirs, 33-27, but the other 3 periods went 97-81 against them. They led by as many as 11. Hachimura's -13 in 37 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/04 vs OKC 116-104 — LAL notes
LAL won 116-104. LAL shot 51% (41 of 80) to OKC's 39%, 16 of 34 from three, and went to the line 25 times to OKC's 16 — 18 points from the stripe to their 15. LAL turned it over 20 times to OKC's 10, and OKC turned those into 12 steals. The glass went 55-38 for them. Russell led with 26 (9 of 17, 5 of 11 from three); Davis added 24, James 19. The hinge was Q2, 27-18: from level to 9 ahead, and the lead reached 25. Dinwiddie was the night's best plus/minus at +35.
3/06 vs SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 119, shooting 53 percent and 41 from three, 16 free throws a game; James at 28 and Davis at 25 a game. Without Vanderbilt (13 straight), Vincent (35 straight), Wood (7 straight). One day's rest. Sacramento comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 116, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 18 free throws a game; Fox at 27 and Murray at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the glass, where Sacramento has been plus-5 a night and the Lakers minus-3 and the arc, the Lakers at 41 percent from three to Sacramento's 36. Call it the Lakers 119, Sacramento 115, Sacramento keeping it close.
3/08 vs MIL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 120, shooting 53 percent and 42 from three, 19 free throws a game; James at 28 and Davis at 23 a game. Without Vanderbilt (14 straight), Vincent (36 straight), Wood (8 straight). One day's rest. Milwaukee comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 102, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 23 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 29 and Lillard at 23 a game. Without Middleton (12 straight). One day's rest.
So: Milwaukee wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Milwaukee allowing 102 a night to the Lakers' 120 and the arc, the Lakers at 42 percent from three to Milwaukee's 36. Call it Milwaukee 116, the Lakers 115, the Lakers keeping it close.
3/10 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 122, shooting 52 percent and 44 from three, 21 free throws a game; James at 27 and Russell at 24 a game. Without Vanderbilt (15 straight), Vincent (37 straight), Wood (9 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 110, shooting 45 percent and 32 from three, 26 free throws a game; Edwards at 23 and Towns at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Towns (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the arc, the Lakers at 44 percent from three to Minnesota's 32 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 110 a night to the Lakers' 122. Call it the Lakers 115, Minnesota 114, Minnesota keeping it close.
3/13 @ SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Sacramento comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 33 from three, 17 free throws a game; Fox at 29 and Sabonis at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 10 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 118, shooting 52 percent and 45 from three, 22 free throws a game; James at 26 and Russell at 22 a game. Without Vanderbilt (16 straight), Vincent (38 straight), Wood (10 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Sacramento wins, and the game turns on the arc, the Lakers at 45 percent from three to Sacramento's 33 and the glass, where Sacramento has been plus-10 a night and the Lakers plus-0. Call it Sacramento 119, the Lakers 116, the Lakers keeping it close.
2/25 @ HOU 123-110 — OKC notes
OKC won 123-110. OKC shot 47% (46 of 97) to HOU's 41%, 17 of 35 from three, and got to the line 15 times to HOU's 23. OKC turned it over 9 times to HOU's 18. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 36 (13 of 23, 2 of 3 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Holmgren added 29, Jal. Williams 22. The hinge was Q3, 30-21: OKC came in trailing by 5 and left it ahead by 4, and the lead reached 17. OKC trailed 57-62 at the half and won the second half 66-48. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
2/27 vs HOU 112-95 — OKC notes
OKC won 112-95. OKC shot 47% (44 of 93) to HOU's 39%, 10 of 27 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 31 (11 of 21, 4 of 6 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Jal. Williams added 24, Holmgren 18. The hinge was Q2, 32-21: OKC came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 10, and the lead reached 20. Jay. Williams was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
2/29 @ SAS 118-132 — OKC notes
OKC lost 118-132. OKC shot 49% (44 of 89) to SAS's 53%, 9 of 31 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 31 (12 of 22, 6 of 7 at the line); Jal. Williams added 26, Holmgren 23. Q3 was theirs, 32-29, the deficit cut from 5 to 2, but the other 3 periods went 103-86 against them. Dort's -17 in 33 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/03 @ PHX 118-110 — OKC notes
OKC won 118-110. OKC shot 48% (49 of 102) to PHX's 44%, 9 of 31 from three. OKC turned it over 5 times to PHX's 21. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 35 (15 of 27, 0 of 5 from three, 5 of 7 at the line); J. Williams added 22, Holmgren 14. The hinge was Q2, 38-28: a lead of 4 became 14, and the lead reached 24. Wiggins was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
3/04 @ LAL 104-116 — OKC notes
OKC lost 104-116. OKC took 14 more shots (94 to 80), fed by 13 offensive rebounds, but shot 39% to LAL's 51%, 15 of 39 from three, and got to the line 16 times to LAL's 25. OKC turned it over 10 times to LAL's 20. The glass went 38-55 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 20 (5 of 13, 9 of 9 at the line); Holmgren added 15, Dort 15. Q4 was theirs, 32-27, the deficit cut from 17 to 12, but the other 3 periods went 89-72 against them. They led by as many as 12. Wiggins's -16 in 16 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/06 @ POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Portland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 104 a night and allowing 102, shooting 44 percent and 32 from three, 17 free throws a game; Simons at 21 and Grant at 14 a game. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without Sharpe (23 straight), Ayton (3 straight), Henderson (6 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 113, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 17 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 31 and Jal. Williams at 20 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Portland has been plus-9 a night and OKC minus-5 and the turnovers, Portland giving it away 16 times a game to OKC's 9. Call it OKC 112, Portland 111, Portland keeping it close.
3/08 vs MIA — 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 116 a night and allowing 115, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 31 and Jal. Williams at 22 a game. One day's rest. Miami comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 109, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 23 free throws a game; Butler III at 24 and Rozier at 19 a game. Without Herro (6 straight), Richardson (9 straight), Wright (3 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, Miami at 42 percent from three to OKC's 35 and the defense, Miami allowing 109 a night to OKC's 115. Call it OKC 116, Miami 110.
3/10 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 115 a night and allowing 116, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 21 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Jal. Williams at 20 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest. Memphis comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 101 a night and allowing 108, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 26 free throws a game; Kennard at 15 and LaRavia at 15 a game. Without Bane (26 straight), Pippen Jr. (10 straight), Williams (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, Memphis giving it away 18 times a game to OKC's 10 and the defense, Memphis allowing 108 a night to OKC's 116. Call it OKC 115, Memphis 108.
3/12 vs IND — 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 116 a night and allowing 108, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 30 and Jal. Williams at 16 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest. Indiana comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 115, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 24 free throws a game; Siakam at 18 and Mathurin at 15 a game. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the line, where Indiana takes 24 free throws a game to OKC's 18 and the defense, OKC allowing 108 a night to Indiana's 115. Call it OKC 120, Indiana 113.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
OKCAW A. Wiggins
BB B. Biyombo
CH C. Holmgren
CW C. Wallace
GH G. Hayward
IJ I. Joe
JG J. Giddey
JW J. Williams
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
LW L. Waters III
MM M. Muscala
OS O. Sarr
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
LALAD A. Davis
AR A. Reaves
CR C. Reddish
DR D. Russell
HG H. Giles III
JH J. Hayes
JH J. Hood-Schifino
LJ L. James
MC M. Christie
ML M. Lewis
RH R. Hachimura
SD S. Dinwiddie
TP T. Prince
OKC/LAL 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
D'Angelo Russell scores 26 points, leads surging Lakers past West-leading Thunder 116-104
LOS ANGELES -- — D’Angelo Russell hit five 3-pointers while scoring 26 points, and Anthony Davis added 24 points and 12 rebounds in the Los Angeles Lakers ' 116-104 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night.
LeBron James had 19 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in the Lakers' 10th victory in 14 games. Austin Reaves added 16 points while hitting four 3s for the Lakers, who won their third straight meeting with the Western Conference-leading Thunder to take the season series.
“They’re so well-coached that you can’t relax,” Russell said. “That team has got everything you need to win and to be efficient at this level. You’ve got to be ready to play against those guys. It’s no fluke (to beat them).”
In his first game since scoring his record 40,000th career point in a loss to Denver, James nearly got a triple-double before the Lakers’ big lead allowed him to sit out the final six minutes. Davis was able to sit out the entire fourth quarter when the Lakers hit six 3-pointers in quick succession during his absence, boosting their lead to 25 points.
Russell punctuated the Lakers' decisive rally by hitting 3-pointers on three consecutive possessions with increasing theatrics.
“My teammates find me when I’m hot,” Russell said. “It makes it easier when I can stretch the floor like that. That’s what shooting does. It’s a pleasure.”
Russell passed to James before his third 3-pointer with 9:06 to play , but James whipped the ball right back to him for a shot that left Russell sprawled on his back from uncalled defensive contact, putting the Lakers up 103-79 and earning a standing ovation.
“I didn’t know I made the shot,” Russell said. “I just kind of threw it up there. Lucky shot.”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 points — ending his streak of eight consecutive 30-point games — for the Thunder, who lost for only the second time in nine games. Lu Dort and Chet Holmgren added 15 points apiece.
“Our start was good offensively, but our overall sharpness just wasn’t there,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “Defensively, we turned them over a bunch of times, and that kept us in it. But certainly not our fastball tonight. ... I just didn’t think we were as sharp offensively as we needed to be. A team like that that’s got size and physicality, that’s a requirement to hit shots against them, but we just didn’t do that enough.”
Oklahoma City hit a season-low 30.6% of its shots in the first half while playing on possibly weary legs during the third stop of a four-game road trip that included a draining win at Phoenix on Sunday.
“Obviously, they’re coming off a tough back-to-back,” Reaves said. “But any time you can beat a team confidently going into the fourth of that caliber, it speaks to what you did offensively and defensively. … Anytime you beat a team like that that’s been playing really good basketball, it feels good and it gives you some momentum going forward.”
Both teams weren't in top form in the first half. The Thunder jumped to a quick 12-point lead, but then fell into a 2-for-21 shooting slump that allowed the Lakers to take a double-digit lead despite committing 12 turnovers.
Oklahoma City big man Jaylin Williams missed his second straight game with a sprained left knee. Mike Muscala made his first appearance since rejoining the Thunder from Detroit, scoring five points in 11 minutes.
Harry Giles III made his Lakers debut in the final minutes.