Game ID: 22300234
Chicago Bulls @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Wednesday, November 22, 2023 at 8:00 PM ET
Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
OKC 26 24 34 32 116CHI 14 25 38 25 102
CHI @ OKC ScoutingCHI @ 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.
OKC availability going into 11/14 · 1 day's restOUT Micić missed 4 since 11/06, returns tonight: 19 min (159% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/16 · 1 day's restBACK Micić back 11/14 after 4, 19 min since (159% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/18 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 2 since 11/14, out tonight
BACK Micić back 11/14 after 4, 20 min since (169% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/19 · back-to-backOUT Dieng missed 3 since 11/14, out tonight
BACK Micić back 11/14 after 4, 16 min since (134% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/22 · 2 days' restOUT Dieng missed 4 since 11/14, out tonight
BACK Micić back 11/14 after 4, 14 min since (114% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/25 · 2 days' restOUT Jal. Williams missed 2 since 11/19, out tonight
OUT Dieng missed 5 since 11/14, returns tonight: 8 min (81% of 10)
BACK Micić back 11/14 after 4, 13 min since (110% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/28 · 2 days' restOUT Jal. Williams missed 3 since 11/19, returns tonight: 34 min (106% of 32)
BACK Dieng back 11/25 after 5, 8 min since (81% of 10)
NEW Joe 18 to 24 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 11/30 · 1 day's restOUT Micić missed 2 since 11/25, out tonight
BACK Jal. Williams back 11/28 after 3, 34 min since (106% of 32)
BACK Dieng back 11/25 after 5, 5 min since (48% of 10)
NEW Joe 18 to 23 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 12/02 · 1 day's restOUT Micić missed 3 since 11/25, out tonight
BACK Jal. Williams back 11/28 after 3, 32 min since (98% of 32)
BACK Dieng back 11/25 after 5, 5 min since (48% of 10)
CHI availability going into 11/15 · 1 day's restOUT Caruso missed 2 since 11/12, returns tonight: 24 min (85% of 29)
OUT Bitim missed 4 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 3 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Dosunmu back 11/06 after 2, 20 min since (67% of 29)
CHI availability going into 11/17 · 1 day's restOUT Bitim missed 5 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 4 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Dosunmu back 11/06 after 2, 19 min since (67% of 29)
BACK Caruso back 11/15 after 2, 24 min since (85% of 29)
CHI availability going into 11/18 · back-to-backOUT Bitim missed 6 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 5 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Caruso back 11/15 after 2, 24 min since (83% of 29)
NEW Craig 20 to 25 min over the last 5
CHI availability going into 11/20 · 1 day's restOUT Bitim missed 7 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 6 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Caruso back 11/15 after 2, 26 min since (89% of 29)
NEW Craig 20 to 25 min over the last 5
CHI availability going into 11/22 · 1 day's restOUT Bitim missed 8 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 7 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Caruso back 11/15 after 2, 26 min since (90% of 29)
CHI availability going into 11/24 · 1 day's restOUT Bitim missed 9 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 8 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Caruso back 11/15 after 2, 26 min since (91% of 29)
CHI availability going into 11/26 · 1 day's restOUT Bitim missed 10 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 9 since 11/08, out tonight
CHI availability going into 11/28 · 1 day's restOUT Bitim missed 11 since 11/06, out tonight
OUT Terry missed 10 since 11/08, returns tonight: 8 min (66% of 12)
CHI availability going into 11/30 · 1 day's restOUT Bitim missed 12 since 11/06, out tonight
BACK Terry back 11/28 after 10, 8 min since (66% of 12)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 102, shooting 53 percent and 47 from three, 20 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 31 and Jal. Williams at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. 2 days' rest. Chicago comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 100 a night and allowing 106, shooting 42 percent and 32 from three, 20 free throws a game; LaVine at 20 and DeRozan at 18 a game. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 47 percent from three to Chicago's 32. Call it OKC 117, Chicago 103, OKC by 14.
11/14 vs SAS 123-87 — OKC notes
OKC won 123-87. OKC shot 52% (46 of 89) to SAS's 39%, 15 of 39 from three, and went to the line 20 times to SAS's 9 — 16 points from the stripe to their 6. OKC turned it over 15 times to SAS's 24. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 28 (10 of 16, 1 of 4 from three, 7 of 7 at the line); Giddey added 18, Jal. Williams 11. The hinge was Q3, 33-18: a lead of 10 became 25, and the lead reached 40. Holmgren was the night's best plus/minus at +30.
11/16 @ GSW 128-109 — OKC notes
OKC won 128-109. OKC shot 51% (44 of 87) to GSW's 41%, 19 of 32 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 24 (6 of 21, 3 of 7 from three, 9 of 9 at the line); Joe added 23, Giddey 19. The hinge was Q1, 39-24: from level to 15 ahead, and the lead reached 21. Wallace was the night's best plus/minus at +22.
11/18 @ GSW 130-123 — OKC notes
OKC won 130-123 in 1 overtime. OKC shot 52% (52 of 100) to GSW's 45%, 8 of 23 from three. OKC turned it over 10 times to GSW's 16. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 40 (18 of 29, 2 of 3 from three); Holmgren added 36, Jal. Williams 22. The hinge was Q3, 34-26: the deficit went from 10 to 2. OKC trailed 51-61 at the half and won the second half 79-62. Joe was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
11/19 @ POR 134-91 — OKC notes
OKC won 134-91. OKC shot 60% (49 of 81) to POR's 40%, 22 of 36 from three, and got to the line 14 times to POR's 21. The glass went 43-31 for them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 28 (10 of 13, 7 of 7 at the line); Holmgren added 16, Joe 15. The hinge was Q2, 43-22: a lead of 12 became 33, and the lead reached 47. Dort was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
11/22 vs CHI 116-102 — OKC notes
OKC won 116-102. OKC shot 49% (37 of 75) to CHI's 39%, 11 of 29 from three, and went to the line 38 times to CHI's 17 — 31 points from the stripe to their 17. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 40 (11 of 19, 1 of 3 from three, 17 of 18 at the line); Joe added 20, Holmgren 18. The hinge was Q1, 26-14: from level to 12 ahead, and the lead reached 18. Holmgren was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
11/25 vs PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 102, shooting 53 percent and 47 from three, 23 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Holmgren at 18 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Jal. Williams (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Philadelphia comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 113, shooting 44 percent and 36 from three, 26 free throws a game; Embiid at 29 and Maxey at 22 a game. Without Oubre Jr. (7 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 47 percent from three to Philadelphia's 36 and the defense, OKC allowing 102 a night to Philadelphia's 113. Call it OKC 119, Philadelphia 110.
11/28 @ MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 108, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 27 free throws a game; Edwards at 27 and Towns at 23 a game. Without McDaniels (3 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 110, shooting 51 percent and 47 from three, 24 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Holmgren at 23 a game. Without Jal. Williams (3 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 47 percent from three to Minnesota's 39 and the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 14 times a game to OKC's 11. Call it Minnesota 115, OKC 114, OKC keeping it close.
11/30 vs LAL — 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 121 a night and allowing 110, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 24 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 34 and Holmgren at 24 a game. One day's rest. The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 113, shooting 51 percent and 34 from three, 24 free throws a game; Davis at 23 and James at 22 a game. Without Hachimura (3 straight), Vanderbilt (6 straight), Vincent (15 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 42 percent from three to the Lakers' 34 and the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 14 times a game to OKC's 10. Call it OKC 118, the Lakers 111.
12/02 @ DAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Dallas comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 104 a night and allowing 112, shooting 41 percent and 31 from three, 21 free throws a game; Dončić at 32 and Irving at 23 a game. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. Without Kleber (10 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. OKC comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 107, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 25 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Holmgren at 20 a game. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 41 percent from three to Dallas's 31 and the glass, where OKC has been plus-0 a night and Dallas minus-9. Call it OKC 117, Dallas 111.
11/15 vs ORL 94-96 — CHI notes
CHI lost 94-96. CHI shot 40% (33 of 83) to ORL's 39%, 9 of 33 from three, and got to the line 22 times to ORL's 30. CHI turned it over 19 times to ORL's 13, and ORL turned those into 12 steals. LaVine led with 19 (6 of 16, 4 of 7 from three); Vučević added 17, Caruso 16. Q3 was theirs, 31-23, the deficit cut from 17 to 9, but the other 3 periods went 73-63 against them. Craig's -8 in 28 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/17 vs ORL 97-103 — CHI notes
CHI lost 97-103. CHI shot 44% (35 of 79) to ORL's 48%, 10 of 29 from three. The glass went 34-46 against them. LaVine led with 34 (12 of 20, 4 of 11 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); DeRozan added 23, Caruso 18. Q4 was theirs, 32-26, the deficit cut from 12 to 6, but the other 3 periods went 77-65 against them. Craig's -15 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/18 vs MIA 102-97 — CHI notes
CHI won 102-97. CHI shot 44% (36 of 81) to MIA's 43%, 16 of 45 from three. The glass went 44-34 for them. DeRozan led with 23 (6 of 12, 2 of 4 from three, 9 of 13 at the line); Vučević added 15, White 14. The hinge was Q4, 34-21: CHI came in trailing by 8 and left it ahead by 5. CHI trailed 40-50 at the half and won the second half 62-47.
11/20 vs MIA 100-118 — CHI notes
CHI lost 100-118. CHI shot 46% (37 of 81) to MIA's 50%, 11 of 37 from three. White led with 20 (7 of 11, 4 of 8 from three); Vučević added 18, DeRozan 15. Q3 was theirs, 28-28, but the other 3 periods went 90-72 against them. LaVine's -24 in 35 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/22 @ OKC 102-116 — CHI notes
CHI lost 102-116. CHI took 13 more shots (88 to 75), fed by 11 offensive rebounds, but shot 39% to OKC's 49%, 17 of 44 from three, and got to the line 17 times to OKC's 38. DeRozan led with 25 (6 of 17, 13 of 13 at the line); White added 23, Vučević 16. Q3 was theirs, 38-34, the deficit cut from 11 to 7, but the other 3 periods went 82-64 against them. DeRozan's -16 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/24 @ 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 49 percent and 38 from three, 25 free throws a game; Siakam at 22 and Schröder at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Freeman-Liberty (13 straight), Young (4 straight). One day's rest. Chicago comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 99 a night and allowing 106, shooting 42 percent and 34 from three, 19 free throws a game; DeRozan at 22 and LaVine at 20 a game. One day's rest.
So: Toronto wins, and the game turns on the defense, Chicago allowing 106 a night to Toronto's 121 and the glass, where Toronto has been plus-6 a night and Chicago minus-2. Call it Toronto 113, Chicago 109, Chicago keeping it close.
11/26 @ BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Brooklyn comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 118, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 22 free throws a game; Bridges at 26 and Dinwiddie at 18 a game. Without Thomas (7 straight), Simmons (8 straight), Smith Jr. (3 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Chicago comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 102 a night and allowing 111, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 19 free throws a game; LaVine at 24 and DeRozan at 21 a game. That is 3 straight losses. One day's rest.
So: Brooklyn wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Brooklyn has been plus-3 a night and Chicago minus-4 and the arc, Brooklyn at 42 percent from three to Chicago's 36. Call it Brooklyn 115, Chicago 110.
11/28 @ BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 111, shooting 45 percent and 33 from three, 25 free throws a game; Tatum at 30 and Porziņģis at 18 a game. Without Holiday (2 straight). One day's rest. Chicago comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 104 a night and allowing 114, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 19 free throws a game; DeRozan at 22 and LaVine at 20 a game. That is 4 straight losses. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the line, where Boston takes 25 free throws a game to Chicago's 19 and the arc, Chicago at 37 percent from three to Boston's 33. Call it Boston 114, Chicago 106.
11/30 vs MIL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Chicago comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 119, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 18 free throws a game; DeRozan at 21 and White at 20 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest. Milwaukee comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 120, shooting 50 percent and 35 from three, 27 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 32 and Lillard at 29 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 12 a night. Without Crowder (9 straight). One day's rest.
So: Milwaukee wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Milwaukee has been plus-12 a night and Chicago minus-6 and the line, where Milwaukee takes 27 free throws a game to Chicago's 18. Call it Milwaukee 119, Chicago 113.
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
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
LW L. Waters III
MI Micic
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
VM V. Micić
CHIAC A. Caruso
AD A. Dosunmu
AD A. Drummond
CW C. White
DD D. DeRozan
JC J. Carter
NV N. Vučević
PW P. Williams
TC T. Craig
VU Vucevic
OKC/CHI 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 scores 40, Thunder beat Bulls for sixth straight victory
OKLAHOMA CITY -- — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 40 points and 12 assists, Chet Holmgren added 18 points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Chicago Bulls 116-102 on Wednesday night for their sixth straight victory.
Isaiah Joe scored 20 points for the Thunder (11-4), on their longest winning streak since the 2018-19 season.
Gilgeous-Alexander raised his average to 30 points for the season and was showered with “MVP! MVP!” chants as he closed out the game with six free throws down the stretch.
In his fifth season with the Thunder, Gilgeous-Alexander moved up to third on the Oklahoma City scoring list, behind Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook .
“Stuff like that is always cool. It’s what you dream of as a kid. Obviously the list has some heavy hitters on it,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We won tonight and that’s all that really matters.”
Gilgeous-Alexander is seeing more double-teams as opponents try to get the ball out of his hands and he credits that for being able to rack up more assists. He accounted for 71 of the Thunder's 116 points Wednesday.
“It’s been a process. I feel like I’m getting better at it. The best players to ever play go through it,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Coach (Mark Daigneault) has been great with helping me. My teammates have been really good, knowing it’s coming as well getting ready in spots knowing the ball is coming out of the trap to make plays and make the next basketball play.”
Daignault was as impressed with Gilgeous-Alexander’s defense as well as his offense and commended his star player and the team for being gritty down the stretch.
“It’s not football, where you just play quarterback,” Daignault said. “To have a guy as engaged and smart as he is, obviously with his length he gets deflections and blocks. He was a two-way player tonight, not just with his scoring. I thought he took what they gave him as far as early passes, getting his teammates involved."
DeMar DeRozan , after making just one basket in the first half, led the Bulls with 25 points.
After being held to 14 points in the first quarter, the Bulls (5-11) got five 3-pointers from Coby White in the second period, but the Bulls still trailed 50-39 at the half. White finished with 23 points, including a season-high seven 3-pointers.
Chicago chipped away at the Thunder’s 11-point halftime lead, tying the game midway through the third quarter on a bucket and free throw from DeRozan before Oklahoma City got back-to-back 3s from Joe and Kenrich Williams to give the Thunder the lead they never relinquished.
“It’s a struggle when you lose, but I see them fighting and trying,” said Bulls coach Billy Donovan . “We just haven’t been consistent enough, and we haven’t been consistent in shooting the basketball. I felt our guys were really trying. We just have these stretches where we dig ourselves somewhat of a hole. We just have to keep fighting through and being more consistent.”
The Bulls, playing without Zach LaVine because of a sore right foot, could get no closer than three in the final period before Gilgeous-Alexander finished the contest with eight straight points.
Oklahoma City won both meetings against the Bulls this season.