Game ID: 22300617
Portland Trail Blazers @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Tuesday, January 23, 2024 at 8:00 PM ET
Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
OKC 38 20 30 23 111POR 28 38 20 23 109
OKC vs POR ScoutingOKC vs POR 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 1/15 · 1 day's restBACK Dieng back 1/11 after 9, 16 min since (154% of 10)
OKC availability going into 1/16 · back-to-backBACK Dieng back 1/11 after 9, 15 min since (144% of 10)
OKC availability going into 1/18 · 1 day's restBACK Dieng back 1/11 after 9, 12 min since (118% of 10)
OKC availability going into 1/20 · 1 day's restBACK Dieng back 1/11 after 9, 12 min since (118% of 10)
OKC availability going into 1/23 · 2 days' restOUT Dieng missed 2 since 1/18, out tonight
OKC availability going into 1/24 · back-to-backOUT Dieng missed 3 since 1/18, out tonight
OKC availability going into 1/26 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 4 since 1/18, out tonight
OKC availability going into 1/28 · 1 day's restOUT Dieng missed 5 since 1/18, out tonight
OKC availability going into 1/29 · back-to-backOUT Dieng missed 6 since 1/18, out tonight
POR availability going into 1/14 · 1 day's restOUT Ayton missed 10 since 12/26, out tonight
BACK Walker back 1/12 after 4, 32 min since (138% of 24)
BACK Rupert back 1/05 after 5, 12 min since (76% of 16)
BACK Minaya back 1/09 after 14, 12 min since (104% of 11)
NEW Reath 18 to 27 min over the last 5
NEW Badji 10 to 16 min over the last 5
POR availability going into 1/17 · 2 days' restOUT Sharpe missed 2 since 1/12, out tonight
OUT Ayton missed 11 since 12/26, out tonight
BACK Walker back 1/12 after 4, 31 min since (130% of 24)
BACK Minaya back 1/09 after 14, 13 min since (117% of 11)
NEW Reath 18 to 30 min over the last 5
NEW Badji 10 to 16 min over the last 4
POR availability going into 1/19 · 1 day's restOUT Sharpe missed 3 since 1/12, out tonight
OUT Ayton missed 12 since 12/26, returns tonight: 30 min (93% of 32)
BACK Walker back 1/12 after 4, 30 min since (129% of 24)
BACK Minaya back 1/09 after 14, 13 min since (117% of 11)
NEW Reath 18 to 27 min over the last 5
NEW Badji 10 to 17 min over the last 4
POR availability going into 1/21 · 1 day's restOUT Sharpe missed 4 since 1/12, out tonight
OUT Rupert missed 2 since 1/17, returns tonight: 6 min (38% of 16)
BACK Ayton back 1/19 after 12, 30 min since (93% of 32)
BACK Walker back 1/12 after 4, 33 min since (140% of 24)
NEW Reath 18 to 26 min over the last 5
POR availability going into 1/23 · 1 day's restOUT Sharpe missed 5 since 1/12, out tonight
BACK Ayton back 1/19 after 12, 26 min since (81% of 32)
BACK Walker back 1/12 after 4, 31 min since (131% of 24)
BACK Rupert back 1/21 after 2, 6 min since (38% of 16)
NEW Reath 18 to 26 min over the last 5
POR availability going into 1/24 · back-to-backOUT Sharpe missed 6 since 1/12, out tonight
OUT Minaya missed 2 since 1/21, out tonight
BACK Ayton back 1/19 after 12, 27 min since (82% of 32)
BACK Rupert back 1/21 after 2, 6 min since (38% of 16)
NEW Brogdon 29 to 34 min over the last 4
NEW Walker 24 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Reath 18 to 25 min over the last 5
POR availability going into 1/26 · 1 day's restOUT Sharpe missed 7 since 1/12, out tonight
OUT Murray missed 2 since 1/23, returns tonight: 17 min (80% of 22)
OUT Rupert missed 2 since 1/23, returns tonight: 8 min (52% of 16)
OUT Minaya missed 3 since 1/21, returns tonight: 22 min (196% of 11)
OUT Badji missed 2 since 1/23, out tonight
OUT Moore missed 2 since 1/23, returns tonight: 1 min (12% of 10)
BACK Ayton back 1/19 after 12, 30 min since (93% of 32)
NEW Brogdon 29 to 35 min over the last 5
NEW Walker 24 to 30 min over the last 5
POR availability going into 1/28 · 1 day's restOUT Sharpe missed 8 since 1/12, out tonight
OUT Badji missed 3 since 1/23, out tonight
BACK Ayton back 1/19 after 12, 31 min since (95% of 32)
BACK Murray back 1/26 after 2, 17 min since (80% of 22)
BACK Rupert back 1/21 after 2, 7 min since (45% of 16)
BACK Minaya back 1/26 after 3, 22 min since (196% of 11)
BACK Moore back 1/26 after 2, 1 min since (12% of 10)
NEW Brogdon 29 to 37 min over the last 4
NEW Walker 24 to 32 min over the last 5
POR availability going into 1/29 · back-to-backOUT Sharpe missed 9 since 1/12, out tonight
OUT Badji missed 4 since 1/23, out tonight
BACK Murray back 1/26 after 2, 17 min since (80% of 22)
BACK Rupert back 1/21 after 2, 7 min since (45% of 16)
BACK Minaya back 1/26 after 3, 22 min since (196% of 11)
BACK Moore back 1/26 after 2, 1 min since (12% of 10)
NEW Brogdon 29 to 37 min over the last 4
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 114 a night and allowing 113, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 23 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 29 and Jal. Williams at 23 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. 2 days' rest. Portland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 119, shooting 46 percent and 38 from three, 25 free throws a game; Grant at 24 and Brogdon at 20 a game. Without Sharpe (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Portland has been minus-1 a night and OKC minus-5. Call it OKC 119, Portland 110.
1/15 @ LAL 105-112 — OKC notes
OKC lost 105-112. OKC took 12 more shots (96 to 84), fed by 13 offensive rebounds, but shot 42% to LAL's 52%, 15 of 49 from three, and got to the line just 11 times against 18 fouls committed. OKC turned it over 11 times to LAL's 17. Jal. Williams led with 25 (10 of 18, 2 of 4 from three); Gilgeous-Alexander added 24, Dort 11. Q2 was theirs, 24-23, the deficit cut from 1 to 0, but the other 3 periods went 89-81 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander's -12 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/16 @ LAC 117-128 — OKC notes
OKC lost 117-128. OKC shot 51% (42 of 83) to LAC's 54%, 16 of 34 from three. Jal. Williams led with 25 (10 of 14, 2 of 3 from three); Gilgeous-Alexander added 19, Dort 19. Q2 was theirs, 31-30, the deficit cut from 5 to 4, but the other 3 periods went 98-86 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander's -19 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/18 @ UTA 134-129 — OKC notes
OKC won 134-129. OKC shot 56% (48 of 86) to UTA's 48%, 14 of 32 from three, and got to the line 28 times to UTA's 36. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 31 (8 of 15, 15 of 17 at the line); Jal. Williams added 27, Giddey 20. The hinge was Q1, 39-27: from level to 12 ahead, and the lead reached 19. Jal. Williams was the night's best plus/minus at +16.
1/20 @ MIN 102-97 — OKC notes
OKC won 102-97. OKC shot 40% (32 of 81) to MIN's 41%, 8 of 24 from three, and went to the line 35 times to MIN's 29 — 30 points from the stripe to their 21. OKC turned it over 8 times to MIN's 21. The glass went 37-50 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 33 (10 of 22, 12 of 13 at the line); Jal. Williams added 20, Holmgren 15. The hinge was Q4, 28-14: OKC came in trailing by 9 and left it ahead by 5, and the lead reached 16.
1/23 vs POR 111-109 — OKC notes
OKC won 111-109. OKC shot 48% (43 of 89) to POR's 43%, 7 of 23 from three, and went to the line 28 times to POR's 21 — 18 points from the stripe to their 17. OKC turned it over 12 times to POR's 19. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 33 (10 of 24, 0 of 3 from three, 13 of 17 at the line); Jal. Williams added 19, Wiggins 13. The hinge was Q1, 38-28: from level to 10 ahead. OKC trailed 58-66 at the half and won the second half 53-43. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
1/24 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 122, shooting 47 percent and 32 from three, 20 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 28 and Vassell at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. One day's rest. OKC comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 115, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 24 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 28 and Jal. Williams at 23 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 37 percent from three to San Antonio's 32 and the defense, OKC allowing 115 a night to San Antonio's 122. Call it OKC 118, San Antonio 116, San Antonio keeping it close.
1/26 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 118, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 28 free throws a game; McCollum at 23 and Williamson at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. 2 days' rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 115, shooting 50 percent and 41 from three, 25 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 30 and Jal. Williams at 21 a game. That is 4 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: New Orleans wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New Orleans has been plus-5 a night and OKC minus-2. Call it New Orleans 119, OKC 118, OKC keeping it close.
1/28 @ DET — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 122, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 25 free throws a game; Bogdanović at 24 and Ivey at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Wiseman (3 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 106, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 24 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Jal. Williams at 19 a game. That is 5 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, OKC allowing 106 a night to Detroit's 122 and the glass, where OKC has been minus-1 a night and Detroit minus-5. Call it OKC 121, Detroit 112.
1/29 vs MIN — 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 113 a night and allowing 105, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 21 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Jal. Williams at 17 a game. Second night of a back-to-back. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 109, shooting 48 percent and 41 from three, 23 free throws a game; Towns at 31 and Edwards at 24 a game. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, Minnesota at 41 percent from three to OKC's 34 and the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-2 a night and OKC minus-3. Call it OKC 113, Minnesota 110, Minnesota keeping it close.
1/14 vs PHX 116-127 — POR notes
POR lost 116-127. POR took 13 more shots (89 to 76), fed by 12 offensive rebounds, but shot 45% to PHX's 61%, 20 of 42 from three. Henderson led with 33 (11 of 31, 4 of 9 from three, 7 of 9 at the line); Simons added 28, Reath 17. Q4 was theirs, 24-21, the deficit cut from 14 to 11, but the other 3 periods went 106-92 against them. Walker's -15 in 29 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/17 vs BKN 105-103 — POR notes
POR won 105-103. POR shot 49% (42 of 86) to BKN's 48%, 9 of 27 from three, and got to the line 14 times to BKN's 27. Grant led with 30 (14 of 26, 2 of 4 from three); Simons added 20, Reath 17. The hinge was Q4, 31-20: POR came in trailing by 9 and left it ahead by 2. POR trailed 51-52 at the half and won the second half 54-51. Grant was the night's best plus/minus at +12.
1/19 vs IND 118-115 — POR notes
POR won 118-115. POR shot 50% (42 of 84) to IND's 43%, 4 of 12 from three, and went to the line 35 times to IND's 25 — 30 points from the stripe to their 17. The glass went 47-37 for them. Grant led with 37 (14 of 28, 1 of 4 from three, 8 of 11 at the line); Brogdon added 30, Walker 13. The hinge was Q2, 30-22: a lead of 3 became 11. Reath was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
1/21 @ LAL 110-134 — POR notes
POR lost 110-134. POR shot 47% (42 of 90) to LAL's 55%, 9 of 29 from three, and got to the line 20 times to LAL's 29. The glass went 35-45 against them. Brogdon led with 23 (8 of 17, 3 of 4 from three); Simons added 19, Grant 17. Q3 was theirs, 33-36, but the other 3 periods went 98-77 against them. Walker's -30 in 22 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/23 @ OKC 109-111 — POR notes
POR lost 109-111. POR shot 43% (37 of 86) to OKC's 48%, 18 of 39 from three, and got to the line 21 times to OKC's 28. POR turned it over 19 times to OKC's 12, and OKC turned those into 9 steals. Henderson led with 19 (7 of 18, 2 of 6 from three); Brogdon added 18, Grant 18. Q2 was theirs, 38-20, turning a 10-point deficit into a 8-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 91-71 against them.
1/24 @ HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 124, shooting 44 percent and 29 from three, 25 free throws a game; Sengun at 23 and Brooks at 15 a game. 2 days' rest. Portland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 118, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Grant at 26 and Brogdon at 22 a game. Without Sharpe (6 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the arc, Portland at 40 percent from three to Houston's 29 and the glass, where Portland has been plus-1 a night and Houston minus-3. Call it Houston 117, Portland 111.
1/26 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 128, shooting 49 percent and 33 from three, 22 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 27 and Vassell at 20 a game. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest. Portland comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 119, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 23 free throws a game; Grant at 25 and Simons at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Sharpe (7 straight), Murray (2 straight), Rupert (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: San Antonio wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Portland has been plus-4 a night and San Antonio minus-6 and the defense, Portland allowing 119 a night to San Antonio's 128. Call it San Antonio 118, Portland 117, Portland keeping it close.
1/28 vs CHI — 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 115 a night and allowing 121, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 24 free throws a game; Simons at 27 and Brogdon at 22 a game. Without Sharpe (8 straight). One day's rest. Chicago comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 34 from three, 19 free throws a game; White at 22 and DeRozan at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without Craig (19 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Chicago wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Chicago has been plus-7 a night and Portland minus-2 and the defense, Chicago allowing 114 a night to Portland's 121. Call it Chicago 115, Portland 114, Portland keeping it close.
1/29 vs PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Portland comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 119, shooting 45 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Simons at 24 and Brogdon at 19 a game. Without Sharpe (9 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Philadelphia comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 113, shooting 48 percent and 29 from three, 30 free throws a game; Embiid at 42 and Maxey at 22 a game. Without Harris (2 straight), Melton (7 straight), Covington (12 straight). One day's rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, on the road, and the game turns on the turnovers, Portland giving it away 14 times a game to Philadelphia's 9 and the line, where Philadelphia takes 30 free throws a game to Portland's 23. Call it Philadelphia 118, Portland 111.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
PORAS A. Simons
DA D. Ayton
DR D. Reath
JG J. Grant
JW J. Walker
MB M. Brogdon
MT M. Thybulle
SH S. Henderson
TC T. Camara
OKCAW A. Wiggins
CH C. Holmgren
CW C. Wallace
DB D. Bertans
IJ I. Joe
JG J. Giddey
JW J. Williams
JW Jal. Williams
JW Jay. Williams
KJ K. Johnson
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
VM V. Micić
POR/OKC 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
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scores 33 points to lift Thunder to 111-109 win over Trail Blazers
OKLAHOMA CITY -- — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 points and Jalen Williams added 19 points, including the game-winner with two seconds left, to help the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Portland Trail Blazers 111-109 on Tuesday night.
Gilgeous-Alexander intercepted a lob intended for Deandre Ayton right before the buzzer sounded to seal the win for Oklahoma City — its seventh-straight over Portland, which lost to the Thunder by 62 points the last time the two teams played.
“I thought the guys collectively did a really good job of hanging in there tonight,” Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said. ” ... we obviously just had a hard time finding our rhythm. Some of that was us and some of that was them. They really showed up and played tonight and did a really nice job. They were really tough to compete against.”
Scoot Henderson scored 19 points and Anfernee Simons added 17 for Portland, including a 3-pointer with 29 seconds left in the game to give the Trail Blazers a 109-106 lead.
A Williams make pulled Oklahoma City to within 109-108 with 15.6 seconds remaining, but Portland turned it over on a double-dribble by guard Malcolm Brogdon . The call infuriated Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, who picked up two technical fouls and was ejected.
Billups said he and Brogdon were trying to call timeout on the possession.
“We’ve got timeouts,” Billups said. “Referees usually are prepared for that, you know, that instance, that situation. I’m at half court, trying to call a timeout. It’s just frustrating. My guys played too hard for that, it’s a frustrating play.”
Gilgeous-Alexander made one of two free throws to tie the score, then Williams connected on a mid-range jumper in traffic to win it for the Thunder.
“Shooters shoot,” said Williams, who scored eight points in the fourth quarter. “That shot I work on a lot. Coach drew the play up for me to shoot it. My mind is a little more free just because it’s a tie game, so it’s like worst case, you get to go to OT. But coach had faith in me to get to the spot I wanted to get to and make the shot.”
Oklahoma City (30-13) got 13 points off the bench from Aaron Wiggins and eight points, 10 rebounds and five blocks from Chet Holmgren .
When the teams played Jan. 11, Oklahoma City shattered its previous record for margin of victory with a 139-77 win. The Thunder also won by 43 points in Portland on Nov. 19.
This time, Portland was playing with Ayton, a 7-footer, and Brogdon, who combined for 23 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Brogdon and Jerami Grant scored 18 points each for Portland (12-31), which has yet to beat a Western Conference team this season (0-16).
“They blew us out (by) 62 a week-and-a-half-ago,” Billups said. “We said ‘listen, either you’re going to roll or get rolled on.’ That’s how this game works. Our guys, they rolled today. They played really good, they shared the ball, defensively I thought we did a really good job, we made them earn everything.”
Two free throws by Gilgeous-Alexander put Oklahoma City up 38-25 with eight seconds left in the first quarter. The Trailblazers cut the lead to 38-28 on a 3-pointer by Jabari Walker that rolled in at the buzzer.
Portland went on a 14-4 run to pull within 42-39 on a 3 by Walker with 8:45 left in the second quarter, prompting Daigneault to take a timeout.
The Trail Blazers heated up from beyond the arc after that and outscored the Thunder 38-20 to lead 66-58 at halftime. Portland connected on 12 of 23 of its 3-point shots (52%) in the first half and 18 of 39 for the game.