Game ID: 22300419
New York Knicks @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Wednesday, December 27, 2023 at 8:00 PM ET
Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
OKC 38 31 24 36 129NYK 25 35 29 31 120
NYK @ OKC ScoutingNYK @ 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 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)
OKC availability going into 12/27 · back-to-backBACK Micić back 12/18 after 2, 12 min since (97% of 12)
OKC availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 2 since 12/26, out tonight
BACK Micić back 12/18 after 2, 12 min since (97% of 12)
OKC availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 3 since 12/26, out tonight
BACK Micić back 12/26 after 2, 15 min since (124% of 12)
OKC availability going into 1/02 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 4 since 12/26, out tonight
BACK Micić back 12/26 after 2, 14 min since (117% of 12)
OKC availability going into 1/03 · back-to-backOUT Dieng missed 5 since 12/26, out tonight
BACK Micić back 12/26 after 2, 13 min since (110% of 12)
NYK availability going into 12/18 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 4 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 13 since 11/18, out tonight
NEW Sims 12 to 19 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/20 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 5 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 14 since 11/18, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 31 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/23 · 2 days' restOUT Robinson missed 6 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 15 since 11/18, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 32 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 7 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 16 since 11/18, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 2 since 12/20, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 32 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 8 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 17 since 11/18, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 3 since 12/20, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 33 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 9 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT McBride missed 2 since 12/25, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 18 since 11/18, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 4 since 12/20, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 34 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/30 · back-to-backOUT Robinson missed 10 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT McBride missed 3 since 12/25, returns tonight: 18 min (85% of 21)
OUT Fournier missed 19 since 11/18, returns tonight: 17 min (135% of 13)
OUT Sims missed 5 since 12/20, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 32 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 1/01 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 11 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 6 since 12/20, out tonight
BACK McBride back 12/30 after 3, 18 min since (85% of 21)
BACK Fournier back 12/30 after 19, 17 min since (135% of 13)
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 32 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 1/03 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 12 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 7 since 12/20, returns tonight: 1 min (9% of 12)
BACK McBride back 12/30 after 3, 12 min since (60% of 21)
BACK Fournier back 12/30 after 19, 17 min since (135% of 13)
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 33 min over the last 5
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 123 a night and allowing 113, shooting 53 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 31 and Holmgren at 19 a game. Second night of a back-to-back. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 121, shooting 48 percent and 33 from three, 24 free throws a game; Brunson at 28 and Randle at 25 a game. Without Robinson (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the defense, OKC allowing 113 a night to New York's 121 and the arc, OKC at 38 percent from three to New York's 33. Call it OKC 120, New York 115.
12/18 vs MEM 116-97 — OKC notes
OKC won 116-97. OKC shot 46% (42 of 92) to MEM's 35%, 11 of 36 from three. OKC turned it over 12 times to MEM's 22. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 30 (8 of 18, 1 of 3 from three, 13 of 14 at the line); Holmgren added 17, Giddey 16. The hinge was Q3, 26-13: a lead of 15 became 28, and the lead reached 31. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +30.
12/21 vs LAC 134-115 — OKC notes
OKC won 134-115. OKC shot 59% (51 of 87) to LAC's 47%, 16 of 34 from three, and went to the line 18 times to LAC's 12 — 16 points from the stripe to their 10. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 31 (11 of 25, 1 of 6 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Holmgren added 23, Dort 21. The hinge was Q3, 45-33: a lead of 5 became 17, and the lead reached 20. Jal. Williams was the night's best plus/minus at +24.
12/23 vs LAL 120-129 — OKC notes
OKC lost 120-129. OKC shot 48% (46 of 95) to LAL's 52%, 13 of 41 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 34 (12 of 21, 1 of 5 from three, 9 of 10 at the line); Jal. Williams added 28, Holmgren 19. Q4 was theirs, 29-22, the deficit cut from 16 to 9, but the other 3 periods went 107-91 against them. Joe's -20 in 20 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/26 vs MIN 129-106 — OKC notes
OKC won 129-106. OKC shot 60% (49 of 81) to MIN's 47%, 18 of 39 from three, and got to the line 16 times to MIN's 32. OKC turned it over 11 times to MIN's 21. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 34 (14 of 19, 0 of 3 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Jal. Williams added 21, Dort 20. The hinge was Q4, 27-15: a lead of 11 became 23. Giddey was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
12/27 vs NYK 129-120 — OKC notes
OKC won 129-120. OKC shot 54% (49 of 90) to NYK's 50%, 14 of 32 from three, and got to the line 22 times to NYK's 30. OKC turned it over 4 times to NYK's 18. The glass went 27-40 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 36 (13 of 23, 2 of 5 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Jal. Williams added 36, Holmgren 22. The hinge was Q1, 38-25: from level to 13 ahead, and the lead reached 17. Dort was the night's best plus/minus at +13.
12/29 @ DEN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 107, shooting 50 percent and 42 from three, 18 free throws a game; Jokić at 26 and Murray at 25 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 113, shooting 53 percent and 40 from three, 20 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Jal. Williams at 22 a game. One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-5 a night and OKC minus-3 and the defense, Denver allowing 107 a night to OKC's 113. Call it Denver 117, OKC 116, OKC keeping it close.
12/31 vs BKN — 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 113, shooting 54 percent and 40 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 35 and Jal. Williams at 22 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest. Brooklyn comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 121, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 31 free throws a game; Cam. Johnson at 19 and Bridges at 18 a game. Without Simmons (25 straight), Walker IV (14 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the line, where Brooklyn takes 31 free throws a game to OKC's 18 and the arc, OKC at 40 percent from three to Brooklyn's 35. Call it OKC 122, Brooklyn 114.
1/02 vs BOS — 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 124 a night and allowing 111, shooting 53 percent and 42 from three, 19 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 34 and Jal. Williams at 23 a game. That is 4 straight wins. One day's rest. Boston comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 131 a night and allowing 113, shooting 51 percent and 38 from three, 25 free throws a game; Tatum at 28 and Porziņģis at 26 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 7 a night. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-7 a night and OKC minus-1 and the line, where Boston takes 25 free throws a game to OKC's 19. Call it OKC 119, Boston 118, Boston keeping it close.
1/03 @ ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 122, shooting 45 percent and 33 from three, 23 free throws a game; Young at 29 and Murray at 23 a game. Without Hunter (5 straight), Krejčí (4 straight). 2 days' rest. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 110, shooting 54 percent and 45 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 34 and Jal. Williams at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 45 percent from three to Atlanta's 33 and the defense, OKC allowing 110 a night to Atlanta's 122. Call it OKC 120, Atlanta 118, Atlanta keeping it close.
12/18 @ LAL 114-109 — NYK notes
NYK won 114-109. NYK shot 48% (42 of 88) to LAL's 42%, 10 of 30 from three, and went to the line 23 times to LAL's 13 — 20 points from the stripe to their 12. NYK turned it over 15 times to LAL's 10, and LAL turned those into 9 steals. The glass went 52-41 for them. Brunson led with 29 (10 of 21, 3 of 6 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Randle added 27, Quickley 20. The hinge was Q3, 33-22: NYK came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 10. NYK trailed 57-58 at the half and won the second half 57-51. Randle was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
12/20 @ BKN 121-102 — NYK notes
NYK won 121-102. NYK shot 46% (44 of 95) to BKN's 37%, 13 of 33 from three, and went to the line 25 times to BKN's 17 — 20 points from the stripe to their 13. Randle led with 26 (9 of 20, 0 of 4 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); DiVincenzo added 23, Quickley 19. The hinge was Q1, 32-20: from level to 12 ahead, and the lead reached 25. Randle was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
12/23 vs MIL 111-130 — NYK notes
NYK lost 111-130. NYK shot 44% (41 of 93) to MIL's 53%, 9 of 29 from three. The glass went 41-53 against them. Brunson led with 36 (15 of 26, 3 of 5 from three); Randle added 26, Barrett 13. Q2 was theirs, 27-26, the deficit cut from 9 to 8, but the other 3 periods went 104-84 against them. Hart's -19 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/25 vs MIL 129-122 — NYK notes
NYK won 129-122. NYK shot 54% (50 of 92) to MIL's 47%, 8 of 26 from three. Brunson led with 38 (15 of 28, 1 of 3 from three, 7 of 9 at the line); Randle added 24, Barrett 21. The hinge was Q1, 36-27: from level to 9 ahead, and the lead reached 16. Quickley was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
12/27 @ OKC 120-129 — NYK notes
NYK lost 120-129. NYK shot 50% (41 of 82) to OKC's 54%, 14 of 34 from three, and went to the line 30 times to OKC's 22 — 24 points from the stripe to their 17. NYK turned it over 18 times to OKC's 4. The glass went 40-27 for them. Randle led with 25 (7 of 15, 1 of 4 from three, 10 of 13 at the line); Brunson added 24, Quickley 22. Q3 was theirs, 29-24, the deficit cut from 9 to 4, but the other 3 periods went 105-91 against them. Gibson's -16 in 10 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/29 @ ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Orlando comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 115, shooting 47 percent and 30 from three, 26 free throws a game; F. Wagner at 24 and Banchero at 22 a game. Without Fultz (22 straight), Ingles (6 straight), Isaac (2 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 118, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 25 free throws a game; Brunson at 29 and Randle at 26 a game. Without Robinson (9 straight), McBride (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Orlando wins, and the game turns on the arc, New York at 36 percent from three to Orlando's 30. Call it Orlando 115, New York 114, New York keeping it close.
12/30 @ IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 113, shooting 52 percent and 42 from three, 19 free throws a game; Haliburton at 24 and Turner at 20 a game. Without Bru. Brown (3 straight), McConnell (2 straight), Sheppard (6 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 120, shooting 48 percent and 33 from three, 26 free throws a game; Randle at 28 and Brunson at 27 a game. Without Robinson (10 straight), McBride (3 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Indiana wins, and the game turns on the arc, Indiana at 42 percent from three to New York's 33 and the line, where New York takes 26 free throws a game to Indiana's 19. Call it Indiana 122, New York 116.
1/01 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 128, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 27 free throws a game; Brunson at 29 and Randle at 28 a game. That is 3 straight losses. Without Robinson (11 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 111, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 26 free throws a game; Edwards at 32 and Gobert at 16 a game. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 111 a night to New York's 128 and the arc, Minnesota at 40 percent from three to New York's 35. Call it Minnesota 116, New York 114, New York keeping it close.
1/03 vs CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 123, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 28 free throws a game; Randle at 31 and Brunson at 25 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Robinson (12 straight). One day's rest. Chicago comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 104 a night and allowing 109, shooting 44 percent and 24 from three, 25 free throws a game; DeRozan at 21 and White at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without LaVine (16 straight), Vučević (4 straight), Craig (8 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the arc, New York at 35 percent from three to Chicago's 24 and the defense, Chicago allowing 109 a night to New York's 123. Call it New York 116, Chicago 110.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
OKCAW A. Wiggins
CH C. Holmgren
CW C. Wallace
DB D. Bertans
IJ I. Joe
JG J. Giddey
JW J. Williams
JW Jal. Williams
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
TM T. Mann
NYKDD D. DiVincenzo
IH I. Hartenstein
IQ I. Quickley
JB J. Brunson
JH J. Hart
JR J. Randle
QG Q. Grimes
RB R. Barrett
TG T. Gibson
OKC/NYK 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, Williams lead Thunder past Knicks 129-120
OKLAHOMA CITY -- — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams each scored 36 points, and Williams hit a pair of clutch 3-pointers in the fourth quarter Wednesday night as the Oklahoma City Thunder held on to beat the New York Knicks 129-120.
Chet Holmgren added 22 points for Oklahoma City (20-9), which beat Western Conference-leading Minnesota on Tuesday night and was playing its third back-to-back this season.
“I thought we really got into our depth in the first half and we were able to keep the minutes under control and still have control of the game,” said Thunder coach Mark Daigneault, whose team committed just four turnovers. “We played a lot of different guys and we had a very balanced rotation minutes-wise in the first half, which allows you to hit the gas in the second half with the higher-minute guys.”
Williams did most of his damage in the fourth, scoring 17 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including eight points and two 3s during a 10-2 run after New York pulled within 111-106 on a basket by Jalen Brunson with 4:37 left.
“Just shooting open shots,” Williams said. “Trying to pick my spots a little more carefully. Me and Chet had a really good two-man thing going on, two-man action, for a lot of those plays. The game’s easier when you make shots, so I was able to hit a couple and that allowed me to be able to drive and opened up things for Chet to have space to do his thing as well.”
Julius Randle led New York (17-13) with 25 points, including 10 free throws, and Brunson added 24 points on 9-of-19 shooting. Immanuel Quickley contributed 22 points off the bench for the Knicks, who shot 41% from the field but made 24 of 30 free throws.
“We started slowly. We were playing from behind,” New York coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I thought we had pretty good resolve. We didn’t let it get away from us and then we couldn’t finish it in the end.”
New York had 18 turnovers, which resulted in 21 Thunder points.
“I thought our turnovers hurt us and some of that is they’re coming after the ball,” Thibodeau said. “Sometimes, if you’re not getting a call, you can get frustrated that way. But I thought the rebounding was good enough. The turnovers put them in the open floor, so it gave them a cushion.”
The Thunder hit 16 of their first 25 shots — 6 of 8 from beyond the arc — to take a 38-25 lead after one quarter. The advantage grew to 17 points in the second quarter, but the Knicks went on a 16-4 run to pull within 50-45 on a 3-pointer by Immanuel Quickley with 5:30 left.
Oklahoma City extended its lead to 69-58 on a three-point-play by Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 19 points before halftime. The Thunder led 69-60 at the break.
Randle helped the Knicks come back in the third quarter, scoring nine of his team’s 11 points during one stretch to make it 83-83. Gilgeous-Alexander responded by scoring four straight, including a layup following a steal. Oklahoma City was outscored 29-24 in the quarter but led 93-89 to start the fourth.