Game ID: 22400487
Boston Celtics @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Sunday, January 5, 2025 at 3:30 PM ET
Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
OKC 32 23 21 29 105BOS 35 30 15 12 92
BOS @ OKC ScoutingBOS @ 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 12/29 · back-to-backOUT Holmgren missed 20 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 2 since 12/26, out tonight
OKC availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Holmgren missed 21 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 3 since 12/26, out tonight
NEW Mitchell 14 to 21 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 1/02 · 1 day's restOUT Holmgren missed 22 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 4 since 12/26, out tonight
NEW Mitchell 14 to 22 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 1/03 · back-to-backOUT Holmgren missed 23 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 5 since 12/26, out tonight
NEW Mitchell 14 to 22 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 1/05 · 1 day's restOUT Holmgren missed 24 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 6 since 12/26, out tonight
NEW Mitchell 14 to 22 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 1/08 · 2 days' restOUT Holmgren missed 25 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 7 since 12/26, out tonight
NEW Mitchell 14 to 19 min over the last 4
OKC availability going into 1/10 · 1 day's restOUT Holmgren missed 26 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 8 since 12/26, out tonight
OUT Mitchell missed 2 since 1/05, out tonight
OKC availability going into 1/12 · 1 day's restOUT Holmgren missed 27 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 9 since 12/26, out tonight
OUT Mitchell missed 3 since 1/05, out tonight
OKC availability going into 1/14 · 1 day's restOUT Holmgren missed 28 since 11/11, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 10 since 12/26, returns tonight: 18 min (86% of 21)
OUT Mitchell missed 4 since 1/05, out tonight
NEW Wallace 26 to 32 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 2 since 12/25, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 10 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Hauser back 12/23 after 2, 16 min since (79% of 21)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 9 min since (64% of 13)
BOS availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 3 since 12/25, returns tonight: 25 min (81% of 31)
OUT Porziņģis missed 2 since 12/27, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 11 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Hauser back 12/23 after 2, 17 min since (83% of 21)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 7 min since (56% of 13)
BOS availability going into 1/02 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 3 since 12/27, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 12 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 25 min since (81% of 31)
BACK Hauser back 12/23 after 2, 17 min since (83% of 21)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 10 min since (77% of 13)
BOS availability going into 1/03 · back-to-backOUT Porziņģis missed 4 since 12/27, returns tonight: 28 min (101% of 27)
OUT Scheierman missed 13 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 32 min since (104% of 31)
BACK Queta back 12/25 after 2, 12 min since (94% of 13)
BOS availability going into 1/05 · 1 day's restOUT Brown missed 2 since 1/02, returns tonight: 40 min (114% of 35)
OUT Scheierman missed 14 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 31 min since (99% of 31)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/03 after 4, 28 min since (101% of 27)
BOS availability going into 1/07 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 15 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Brown back 1/05 after 2, 40 min since (114% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 31 min since (102% of 31)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/03 after 4, 28 min since (105% of 27)
BOS availability going into 1/10 · 2 days' restOUT Scheierman missed 16 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Brown back 1/05 after 2, 39 min since (113% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 12/31 after 3, 32 min since (102% of 31)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/03 after 4, 30 min since (112% of 27)
BOS availability going into 1/12 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 17 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Brown back 1/05 after 2, 38 min since (109% of 35)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/03 after 4, 30 min since (110% of 27)
BOS availability going into 1/15 · 2 days' restOUT Scheierman missed 18 since 12/04, out tonight
BACK Brown back 1/05 after 2, 38 min since (110% of 35)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/03 after 4, 31 min since (113% of 27)
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 116 a night and allowing 102, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 32 and Jal. Williams at 17 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Holmgren (24 straight), Caruso (6 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 100, shooting 50 percent and 41 from three, 17 free throws a game; Brown at 29 and Tatum at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Brown (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, Boston at 41 percent from three to OKC's 35 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-1 a night and OKC minus-4. Call it OKC 112, Boston 111, Boston keeping it close.
12/29 vs MEM 130-106 — OKC notes
OKC won 130-106. OKC shot 50% (52 of 103) to MEM's 38%, 14 of 44 from three, and got to the line 12 times to MEM's 21. OKC turned it over 10 times to MEM's 21. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 35 (14 of 19, 1 of 5 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Mitchell added 17, Wiggins 16. The hinge was Q2, 42-19: a lead of 3 became 26, and the lead reached 31. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
12/31 vs MIN 113-105 — OKC notes
OKC won 113-105. OKC shot 47% (42 of 89) to MIN's 49%, 12 of 36 from three, and went to the line 23 times to MIN's 12 — 17 points from the stripe to their 12. OKC turned it over 9 times to MIN's 23. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 40 (15 of 23, 3 of 5 from three, 7 of 9 at the line); Hartenstein added 15, Jal. Williams 14. The hinge was Q3, 43-23: OKC came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 14. OKC trailed 46-52 at the half and won the second half 67-53. Joe was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
1/02 vs LAC 116-98 — OKC notes
OKC won 116-98. OKC shot 50% (43 of 86) to LAC's 47%, 14 of 38 from three. OKC turned it over 9 times to LAC's 19. The glass went 35-45 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 29 (9 of 17, 2 of 5 from three, 9 of 9 at the line); Jal. Williams added 18, Mitchell 11. The hinge was Q3, 42-20: OKC came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 18, and the lead reached 28. OKC trailed 48-52 at the half and won the second half 68-46. Jal. Williams was the night's best plus/minus at +33.
1/03 vs NYK 117-107 — OKC notes
OKC won 117-107. OKC shot 51% (43 of 84) to NYK's 48%, 14 of 27 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 33 (12 of 26, 2 of 3 from three, 7 of 7 at the line); Jal. Williams added 20, Wiggins 19. The hinge was Q4, 37-19: OKC came in trailing by 8 and left it ahead by 10. OKC trailed 54-66 at the half and won the second half 63-41. Wallace was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
1/05 vs BOS 105-92 — OKC notes
OKC won 105-92. OKC shot 45% (39 of 87) to BOS's 36%, 16 of 38 from three, and got to the line 13 times to BOS's 24. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 33 (11 of 23, 3 of 6 from three, 8 of 8 at the line); Wiggins added 15, Dort 14. The hinge was Q4, 29-12: OKC came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 13. OKC trailed 55-65 at the half and won the second half 50-27. Jal. Williams was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
1/08 @ CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 113, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 17 free throws a game; Mitchell at 23 and Garland at 21 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Merrill (2 straight), Okoro (8 straight). 2 days' rest. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 102, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 34 and Jal. Williams at 15 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Holmgren (25 straight), Caruso (7 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the defense, OKC allowing 102 a night to Cleveland's 113. Call it Cleveland 115, OKC 112, OKC keeping it close.
1/10 @ NYK — 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 112 a night and allowing 112, shooting 49 percent and 30 from three, 22 free throws a game; Towns at 30 and Brunson at 23 a game. Without McBride (5 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 106, shooting 49 percent and 39 from three, 19 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Jal. Williams at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Holmgren (26 straight), Caruso (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 39 percent from three to New York's 30 and the glass, where New York has been plus-4 a night and OKC minus-4. Call it OKC 112, New York 111, New York keeping it close.
1/12 @ WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Washington comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 125, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 17 free throws a game; Butler at 15 and Kuzma at 15 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Without Brogdon (3 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 105, shooting 51 percent and 43 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Jal. Williams at 18 a game. Without Holmgren (27 straight), Caruso (9 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, OKC allowing 105 a night to Washington's 125 and the arc, OKC at 43 percent from three to Washington's 36. Call it OKC 118, Washington 108, OKC by 10.
1/14 @ PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Philadelphia comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 107, shooting 45 percent and 37 from three, 23 free throws a game; Maxey at 27 and George at 20 a game. Without Embiid (4 straight), Lowry (4 straight), Drummond (4 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 105, shooting 50 percent and 43 from three, 21 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Jal. Williams at 18 a game. Without Holmgren (28 straight), Caruso (10 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where OKC has been plus-3 a night and Philadelphia minus-3 and the arc, OKC at 43 percent from three to Philadelphia's 37. Call it OKC 113, Philadelphia 107.
12/29 vs IND 114-123 — BOS notes
BOS lost 114-123. BOS shot 46% (43 of 93) to IND's 53%, 16 of 54 from three, and got to the line 19 times to IND's 27. Brown led with 31 (13 of 21, 2 of 6 from three); Tatum added 22, Pritchard 21. Q1 was theirs, 29-27, but the other 3 periods went 96-85 against them. Tatum's -21 in 41 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/31 vs TOR 125-71 — BOS notes
BOS won 125-71. BOS shot 54% (47 of 87) to TOR's 31%, 22 of 43 from three. BOS turned it over 13 times to TOR's 21. Tatum led with 23 (6 of 13, 4 of 9 from three, 7 of 11 at the line); Pritchard added 19, White 16. The hinge was Q3, 45-18: a lead of 10 became 37, and the lead reached 56. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +38.
1/02 @ MIN 118-115 — BOS notes
BOS won 118-115. BOS shot 50% (46 of 92) to MIN's 50%, 22 of 57 from three, and got to the line 6 times to MIN's 22. BOS turned it over 3 times to MIN's 15. The glass went 31-41 against them. Tatum led with 33 (13 of 27, 6 of 17 from three); White added 26, Hauser 15. The hinge was Q2, 34-16: BOS came in trailing by 7 and left it ahead by 11. Queta was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
1/03 @ HOU 109-86 — BOS notes
BOS won 109-86. BOS shot 51% (39 of 77) to HOU's 36%, 19 of 39 from three, and went to the line 18 times to HOU's 12 — 12 points from the stripe to their 12. White led with 23 (8 of 16, 6 of 12 from three); Tatum added 20, Pritchard 20. The hinge was Q4, 27-14: a lead of 10 became 23, and the lead reached 28. White was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
1/05 @ OKC 92-105 — BOS notes
BOS lost 92-105. BOS shot 36% (31 of 85) to OKC's 45%, 9 of 46 from three, and went to the line 24 times to OKC's 13 — 21 points from the stripe to their 11. Tatum led with 26 (7 of 17, 2 of 6 from three, 10 of 12 at the line); Brown added 21, Porziņģis 19. Q2 was theirs, 30-23, but the other 3 periods went 82-62 against them. They led by as many as 13. Porziņģis's -17 in 29 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/07 @ DEN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 117, shooting 50 percent and 37 from three, 23 free throws a game; Jokić at 37 and Porter Jr. at 24 a game. Without Gordon (6 straight). 2 days' rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 100, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 16 free throws a game; Tatum at 25 and Brown at 21 a game. One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 100 a night to Denver's 117 and the line, where Denver takes 23 free throws a game to Boston's 16. Call it Denver 116, Boston 115, Boston keeping it close.
1/10 vs SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 97, shooting 48 percent and 38 from three, 17 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and White at 19 a game. 2 days' rest. Sacramento comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 111, shooting 46 percent and 38 from three, 23 free throws a game; Fox at 30 and Monk at 23 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without Fox (2 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 97 a night to Sacramento's 111 and the glass, where Sacramento has been plus-7 a night and Boston plus-1. Call it Boston 115, Sacramento 110.
1/12 vs NOP — 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 107 a night and allowing 105, shooting 46 percent and 33 from three, 18 free throws a game; Tatum at 25 and Brown at 21 a game. One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 111, shooting 44 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; McCollum at 28 and Murray at 18 a game. Without Murphy III (3 straight), Williamson (2 straight), Payton (17 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the arc, New Orleans at 38 percent from three to Boston's 33 and the defense, Boston allowing 105 a night to New Orleans's 111. Call it Boston 115, New Orleans 107.
1/15 @ TOR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Toronto comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 119, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 18 free throws a game; Barnes at 20 and Barrett at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Mogbo (4 straight), Lawson (7 straight), Battle (6 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 106, shooting 44 percent and 31 from three, 21 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and Brown at 20 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 106 a night to Toronto's 119 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-2 a night and Toronto minus-6. Call it Boston 115, Toronto 110.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JH J. Holiday
JT J. Tatum
KP K. Porziņģis
LK L. Kornet
PP P. Pritchard
PO Porzingis
SH S. Hauser
OKCAW A. Wiggins
CW C. Wallace
IH I. Hartenstein
IJ I. Joe
JW J. Williams
JW Jal. Williams
JW Jay. Williams
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
BOS/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
Gilgeous-Alexander scores 33, Thunder top Celtics for franchise-record 15th-straight win
OKLAHOMA CITY -- — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 33 points and 11 rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder pulled away from the Boston Celtics 105-92 on Sunday for their franchise-record 15th straight win.
The Thunder, who improved to 30-5, have not lost a game that counted in the standings since Dec. 1. Their loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Cup final does not count on the team’s record.
Jayson Tatum had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the defending NBA champion Celtics. Jaylen Brown scored 21 points, but went scoreless on 0-for-7 shooting in the second half.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored nine points in the first 3 1/2 minutes of the game to help the Thunder take an early lead, but Boston rallied and led 65-55 at halftime.
The Thunder trimmed the deficit to 80-76 at the end of the third quarter and regained the lead, 81-80, on a pair of free throws by Jalen Williams early in the fourth.
The Thunder remained in control, and back-to-back 3s by Lu Dort put the Thunder up 100-88 with just under two minutes to play. Dort scored 11 points and made all three of his shots from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter.
Takeaways Celtics: Boston remains a team that can lose at any time because of its heavy dependence on 3-pointers. The Celtics made just 9 of 46 shots from deep.
Thunder: Oklahoma City, much like it did Friday against New York, refused to cave when it fell behind by double digits. The Thunder hung around, then outscored the Celtics 29-12 in the fourth quarter.
Key moment Gilgeous-Alexander crossed over Holiday, then hit a 3-pointer to give the Thunder a 92-85 lead midway through the fourth quarter.
Key stat Oklahoma City held Boston to a season-low 27 points in the second half. The Celtics' previous low was 44.