Game ID: 22300185
Oklahoma City Thunder @ Phoenix Suns
Sunday, November 12, 2023 at 8:00 PM ET
Footprint Center, Phoenix, AZ
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
PHX 29 30 27 13 99OKC 29 25 26 31 111
OKC @ PHX ScoutingOKC @ PHX 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.
PHX availability going into 11/04 · 1 day's restOUT Metu missed 2 since 10/31, returns tonight: 5 min (41% of 12)
OUT Bol missed 2 since 10/31, out tonight
BACK Booker back 11/02 after 3, 35 min since (97% of 36)
BACK Bates-Diop back 10/28 after 2, 12 min since (78% of 15)
NEW Okogie 16 to 26 min over the last 5
NEW Watanabe 13 to 20 min over the last 5
PHX availability going into 11/05 · back-to-backOUT Bol missed 3 since 10/31, returns tonight: 3 min (24% of 11)
BACK Booker back 11/02 after 3, 35 min since (97% of 36)
BACK Bates-Diop back 10/28 after 2, 16 min since (104% of 15)
BACK Metu back 10/28 after 2, 4 min since (31% of 12)
NEW Okogie 16 to 25 min over the last 5
NEW Goodwin 14 to 19 min over the last 5
NEW Watanabe 13 to 21 min over the last 5
PHX availability going into 11/08 · 2 days' restOUT Booker missed 2 since 11/04, out tonight
BACK Bates-Diop back 10/28 after 2, 17 min since (110% of 15)
BACK Metu back 10/28 after 2, 3 min since (25% of 12)
BACK Bol back 10/28 after 2, 3 min since (31% of 11)
NEW Okogie 16 to 24 min over the last 5
NEW Watanabe 13 to 22 min over the last 5
PHX availability going into 11/10 · 1 day's restOUT Booker missed 3 since 11/04, out tonight
BACK Metu back 11/04 after 2, 3 min since (27% of 12)
BACK Bol back 11/05 after 3, 3 min since (24% of 11)
NEW Okogie 16 to 23 min over the last 5
NEW Bates-Diop 15 to 23 min over the last 4
NEW Watanabe 13 to 21 min over the last 5
PHX availability going into 11/12 · 1 day's restOUT Booker missed 4 since 11/04, out tonight
OUT Metu missed 2 since 11/08, returns tonight: 1 min (6% of 12)
OUT Bol missed 2 since 11/08, out tonight
NEW Bates-Diop 15 to 25 min over the last 5
NEW Watanabe 13 to 20 min over the last 5
PHX availability going into 11/15 · 2 days' restOUT Booker missed 5 since 11/04, returns tonight: 26 min (71% of 36)
OUT Bol missed 3 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Metu back 11/04 after 2, 2 min since (20% of 12)
NEW Okogie 16 to 21 min over the last 5
NEW Bates-Diop 15 to 26 min over the last 5
NEW Watanabe 13 to 18 min over the last 5
PHX availability going into 11/17 · 1 day's restOUT Bol missed 4 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Booker back 11/15 after 5, 26 min since (71% of 36)
BACK Metu back 11/12 after 2, 2 min since (17% of 12)
NEW Bates-Diop 15 to 24 min over the last 5
NEW Watanabe 13 to 18 min over the last 5
PHX availability going into 11/19 · 1 day's restOUT Beal missed 2 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Bol missed 5 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Booker back 11/15 after 5, 29 min since (79% of 36)
BACK Metu back 11/12 after 2, 2 min since (17% of 12)
NEW Bates-Diop 15 to 24 min over the last 5
PHX availability going into 11/21 · 1 day's restOUT Beal missed 3 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Metu missed 2 since 11/17, returns tonight: 6 min (47% of 12)
OUT Bol missed 6 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Booker back 11/15 after 5, 33 min since (90% of 36)
NEW Bates-Diop 15 to 22 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 11/03 · 1 day's restOUT Micić missed 2 since 10/30, returns tonight: 12 min (101% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/06 · 2 days' restBACK Micić back 11/03 after 2, 12 min since (101% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/08 · 1 day's restBACK Micić back 11/03 after 2, 12 min since (101% of 12)
OKC availability going into 11/10 · 1 day's restOUT Micić missed 2 since 11/06, out tonight
OKC availability going into 11/12 · 1 day's restOUT Micić missed 3 since 11/06, out tonight
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)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Phoenix comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 117, shooting 45 percent and 39 from three, 28 free throws a game; Durant at 33 and Allen at 15 a game. Without Booker (4 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 119, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 25 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Holmgren at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest.
So: Phoenix wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Phoenix has been plus-4 a night and OKC minus-8. Call it Phoenix 117, OKC 115, OKC keeping it close.
11/04 @ PHI 100-112 — PHX notes
PHX lost 100-112. PHX shot 36% (32 of 89) to PHI's 48%, 9 of 35 from three, and went to the line 33 times to PHI's 18 — 27 points from the stripe to their 15. PHX turned it over 10 times to PHI's 17. Durant led with 31 (9 of 20, 1 of 4 from three, 12 of 14 at the line); Gordon added 13, Nurkić 11. Q3 was theirs, 30-28, the deficit cut from 7 to 5, but the other 3 periods went 84-70 against them. Gordon's -19 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/05 @ DET 120-106 — PHX notes
PHX won 120-106. PHX shot 50% (43 of 86) to DET's 49%, 8 of 21 from three, and went to the line 29 times to DET's 14 — 26 points from the stripe to their 12. The glass went 43-33 for them. Durant led with 41 (14 of 27, 1 of 3 from three, 12 of 12 at the line); Gordon added 21, Allen 14. The hinge was Q2, 30-22: a lead of 1 became 9, and the lead reached 21. Gordon was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
11/08 @ CHI 116-115 — PHX notes
PHX won 116-115 in 1 overtime. PHX shot 42% (38 of 90) to CHI's 44%, 19 of 48 from three. PHX turned it over 21 times to CHI's 14, and CHI turned those into 12 steals. The glass went 54-39 for them. Allen led with 26 (9 of 16, 8 of 13 from three); Durant added 25, Nurkić 20. The hinge was Q1, 36-28: from level to 8 ahead, and the lead reached 18.
11/10 vs LAL 119-122 — PHX notes
PHX lost 119-122. PHX took 10 more shots (94 to 84), fed by 17 offensive rebounds, but shot 45% to LAL's 50%, 15 of 37 from three, and got to the line 27 times to LAL's 34. Durant led with 38 (13 of 27, 4 of 6 from three, 8 of 10 at the line); Beal added 24, Nurkić 14. Q1 was theirs, 34-25, but the other 3 periods went 97-85 against them. They led by as many as 14. Beal's -14 in 32 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/12 vs OKC 99-111 — PHX notes
PHX lost 99-111. PHX shot 39% (32 of 83) to OKC's 49%, 9 of 29 from three, and went to the line 31 times to OKC's 25 — 26 points from the stripe to their 21. PHX turned it over 17 times to OKC's 7, and OKC turned those into 9 steals. The glass went 51-33 for them. Durant led with 28 (7 of 18, 3 of 5 from three, 11 of 11 at the line); Beal added 15, Eubanks 15. Q2 was theirs, 30-25, but the other 3 periods went 86-69 against them. Allen's -19 in 32 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/15 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Phoenix comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 113, shooting 42 percent and 35 from three, 29 free throws a game; Durant at 33 and Beal at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without Booker (5 straight). 2 days' rest. Minnesota comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 106, shooting 51 percent and 38 from three, 25 free throws a game; Edwards at 29 and Towns at 23 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Phoenix has been plus-9 a night and Minnesota plus-3 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 106 a night to Phoenix's 113. Call it Minnesota 111, Phoenix 110, Phoenix keeping it close.
11/17 @ UTA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Utah comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 121, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 19 free throws a game; Markkanen at 24 and Clarkson at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Kessler (3 straight), Hendricks (10 straight), Sensabaugh (10 straight). 2 days' rest. Phoenix comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 114, shooting 47 percent and 41 from three, 25 free throws a game; Durant at 33 and Beal at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 9 a night. One day's rest.
So: Phoenix wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Phoenix allowing 114 a night to Utah's 121 and the line, where Phoenix takes 25 free throws a game to Utah's 19. Call it Phoenix 116, Utah 115, Utah keeping it close.
11/19 @ UTA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Utah comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 123, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Clarkson at 27 and Markkanen at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Kessler (4 straight), Hendricks (11 straight), Sensabaugh (11 straight). One day's rest. Phoenix comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 118, shooting 47 percent and 44 from three, 25 free throws a game; Durant at 32 and Beal at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Beal (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Utah wins, and the game turns on the arc, Phoenix at 44 percent from three to Utah's 40. Call it Utah 119, Phoenix 118, Phoenix keeping it close.
11/21 vs POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Phoenix comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 123, shooting 49 percent and 44 from three, 25 free throws a game; Durant at 35 and Booker at 27 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Beal (3 straight). One day's rest. Portland comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 98 a night and allowing 116, shooting 42 percent and 31 from three, 17 free throws a game; Grant at 21 and Sharpe at 14 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Simons (12 straight), Brogdon (5 straight), Henderson (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: Phoenix wins, and the game turns on the arc, Phoenix at 44 percent from three to Portland's 31 and the glass, where Phoenix has been plus-0 a night and Portland minus-7. Call it Phoenix 119, Portland 108, Phoenix by 11.
11/03 vs GSW 139-141 — OKC notes
OKC lost 139-141. OKC shot 60% (50 of 83) to GSW's 53%, 15 of 29 from three. Dort led with 29 (9 of 12, 6 of 6 from three, 5 of 7 at the line); Holmgren added 24, Jal. Williams 18. Q2 was theirs, 34-31, the deficit cut from 5 to 2, but the other 3 periods went 110-105 against them.
11/06 vs ATL 126-117 — OKC notes
OKC won 126-117. OKC shot 48% (45 of 94) to ATL's 37%, 14 of 35 from three, and got to the line 23 times to ATL's 32. The glass went 49-59 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 30 (11 of 20, 3 of 7 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Jal. Williams added 21, Dort 19. The hinge was Q3, 38-27: a lead of 8 became 19. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
11/08 vs CLE 128-120 — OKC notes
OKC won 128-120. OKC shot 51% (44 of 86) to CLE's 51%, 12 of 28 from three, and got to the line 30 times to CLE's 37. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 43 (15 of 22, 12 of 13 at the line); Jal. Williams added 15, Holmgren 15. The hinge was Q1, 36-29: from level to 7 ahead, and the lead reached 17. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +10.
11/10 @ SAC 98-105 — OKC notes
OKC lost 98-105. OKC shot 45% (39 of 87) to SAC's 42%, 7 of 30 from three. The glass went 38-52 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 33 (14 of 25, 5 of 6 at the line); Jal. Williams added 14, Giddey 13. Q3 was theirs, 28-22, the deficit cut from 11 to 5, but the other 3 periods went 83-70 against them. Giddey's -19 in 27 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/12 @ PHX 111-99 — OKC notes
OKC won 111-99. OKC shot 49% (40 of 82) to PHX's 39%, 10 of 27 from three, and got to the line 25 times to PHX's 31. OKC turned it over 7 times to PHX's 17. The glass went 33-51 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 35 (13 of 22, 2 of 5 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Jal. Williams added 31, Holmgren 18. The hinge was Q4, 31-13: OKC came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 12. OKC trailed 54-59 at the half and won the second half 57-40. Holmgren was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
11/14 vs SAS — 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 120 a night and allowing 116, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 25 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 35 and Jal. Williams at 20 a game. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. One day's rest. San Antonio comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 127, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 17 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 19 and Vassell at 16 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Without Champagnie (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the defense, OKC allowing 116 a night to San Antonio's 127 and the line, where OKC takes 25 free throws a game to San Antonio's 17. Call it OKC 123, San Antonio 113, OKC by 10.
11/16 @ GSW — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Golden State comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 111, shooting 42 percent and 31 from three, 24 free throws a game; Curry at 31 and Thompson at 12 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 106, shooting 49 percent and 36 from three, 23 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 34 and Jal. Williams at 18 a game. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Golden State has been plus-5 a night and OKC minus-9 and the arc, OKC at 36 percent from three to Golden State's 31. Call it OKC 113, Golden State 111, Golden State keeping it close.
11/18 @ GSW — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Golden State comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 115, shooting 41 percent and 32 from three, 24 free throws a game; Curry at 30 and Kuminga at 12 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Curry (2 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 104, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 23 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Jal. Williams at 17 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Golden State has been plus-6 a night and OKC minus-8 and the arc, OKC at 40 percent from three to Golden State's 32. Call it OKC 114, Golden State 110, Golden State keeping it close.
11/19 @ POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Portland comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 114, shooting 44 percent and 33 from three, 18 free throws a game; Grant at 26 and Sharpe at 16 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Simons (11 straight), Brogdon (4 straight), Henderson (7 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 105, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 21 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Jal. Williams at 19 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 39 percent from three to Portland's 33 and the defense, OKC allowing 105 a night to Portland's 114. Call it OKC 113, Portland 108.
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
LD L. Dort
OD O. Dieng
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
PHXBB B. Beal
CM C. Metu
DE D. Eubanks
GA G. Allen
JG J. Goodwin
JN J. Nurkić
JO J. Okogie
KB K. Bates-Diop
KD K. Durant
NU Nurkic
YW Y. Watanabe
OKC/PHX 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, Thunder storm ahead in 4th quarter, beat Suns 111-99
PHOENIX -- — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points, Jalen Williams had 31 and the Oklahoma City Thunder used a big fourth quarter to beat the Phoenix Suns 111-99 on Sunday night.
The Thunder outscored Phoenix 31-13 in the fourth quarter — holding the Suns without a field goal for the final 6:42 — and won despite being outrebounded 52-33.
Rookie Chet Holmgren added 18 points and Josh Giddey had 10 points and 10 assists to help the Thunder win for the third time in four games to move to 6-4.
Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams combined to make 24 of 38 shots (63%) and the Thunder shot 49%. The Suns shot 38%, but only made 2 of 21 shots in the fourth quarter.
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault praised his team's effort against Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal in particular.
“Really good focus and execution. We made them earn everything," Daigneault said. "I thought we did a great job collectively on their main guys, keeping them out of rhythm.”
“I thought we course-corrected in-game. There were some things in the first half that were a little loose, just on our rotations that we cleaned up.”
Gilgeous-Alexander echoed his coach's thoughts. “Our biggest emphasis was to make their main guys play outside their comfort zone.”
He also praised Williams, who he said has the ability to score.
“He’s just such an unselfish guy," Gilgeous-Alexander said. We’re always on him to stay more aggressive.”
Durant led the Suns with 28 points and nine rebounds and was 11 for 11 from the free-throw line. Beal had 15 points and eight rebounds, while Drew Eubanks scored 15 points off the bench. The Suns, playing without All-Star guard Devin Booker and backup Eric Gordon , fell to 4-6.
The Suns have had fourth-quarter troubles this season, including a loss to San Antonio in which the Spurs never led under the final second of the game, and a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night in the NBA In-Season Tournament.
“I felt like our execution was better. Shots just didn’t fall," Suns coach Frank Vogel said. “Brad's battling through his back injury and trying to get his legs under him. KD has been carrying a heavy load for us all season. Played every game and pretty big minutes.”
Beal returned last week after being out with back spasms, Booker is sidelined by a sprained left ankle and Gordon sat out because of soreness in his left shoulder. Vogel said before the game that Gordon woke up with significant soreness from the last game.
“We can't win games that way,” Durant said about the fourth-quarter shooting drought. “If you don't make shots you can't win. And they made shots.”
Neither team led by double figures until Gilgeous-Alexander’s 3-pointer with under four minutes to go gave the Thunder a 95-85 edge. The final margin was Oklahoma City's largest lead of the night.
NEXT
Thunder: Host San Antonio on Tuesday night in an NBA In-Season Tournament game.