Game ID: 42500223
Oklahoma City Thunder @ Los Angeles Lakers
Saturday, May 9, 2026 at 8:30 PM ET
Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
LAL 25 34 20 29 108OKC 31 26 33 41 131
LAL vs OKC ScoutingLAL vs 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.
LAL availability going into 4/29 · 2 days' restOUT Reaves missed 9 since 4/05, returns tonight: 34 min (97% of 35)
BACK Hayes back 4/18 after 4, 17 min since (96% of 18)
BACK Smith Jr. back 4/24 after 2, 4 min since (34% of 11)
BACK Kleber back 4/26 after 3, 7 min since (66% of 10)
NEW Hachimura 30 to 37 min over the last 5
NEW Kennard 25 to 34 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 5/01 · 1 day's restBACK Reaves back 4/29 after 9, 34 min since (97% of 35)
BACK Hayes back 4/18 after 4, 16 min since (88% of 18)
BACK Smith Jr. back 4/24 after 2, 4 min since (34% of 11)
BACK Kleber back 4/26 after 3, 7 min since (66% of 10)
NEW James 34 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Hachimura 30 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Smart 29 to 35 min over the last 5
NEW Kennard 25 to 38 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 5/05 · 3 days' restOUT Kleber missed 2 since 4/29, out tonight
BACK Reaves back 4/29 after 9, 32 min since (93% of 35)
BACK Smith Jr. back 4/24 after 2, 4 min since (32% of 11)
NEW Hachimura 30 to 37 min over the last 5
NEW Smart 29 to 35 min over the last 5
NEW Kennard 25 to 36 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 5/07 · 1 day's restOUT Kleber missed 3 since 4/29, out tonight
BACK Reaves back 4/29 after 9, 33 min since (96% of 35)
BACK Smith Jr. back 4/24 after 2, 3 min since (28% of 11)
NEW Hachimura 30 to 36 min over the last 5
NEW Smart 29 to 35 min over the last 5
NEW Kennard 25 to 33 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 5/09 · 1 day's restOUT Kleber missed 4 since 4/29, returns tonight: 8 min (73% of 10)
BACK Reaves back 4/29 after 9, 35 min since (100% of 35)
NEW Hachimura 30 to 35 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 5/11 · 1 day's restOUT Vanderbilt missed 2 since 5/07, returns tonight: 3 min (17% of 17)
BACK Reaves back 4/29 after 9, 36 min since (102% of 35)
BACK Kleber back 5/09 after 4, 8 min since (73% of 10)
NEW Hachimura 30 to 37 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 4/25 · 2 days' restBACK Gilgeous-Alexande back 4/19 after 2, 34 min since (100% of 34)
BACK Holmgren back 4/19 after 2, 29 min since (98% of 29)
BACK Jal. Williams back 4/19 after 2, 26 min since (96% of 27)
BACK Mitchell back 4/19 after 2, 25 min since (97% of 26)
BACK Wallace back 4/19 after 2, 21 min since (80% of 26)
BACK Hartenstein back 4/19 after 2, 21 min since (87% of 24)
BACK Joe back 4/19 after 2, 17 min since (89% of 20)
BACK Caruso back 4/19 after 2, 18 min since (95% of 19)
BACK J. Williams back 4/19 after 2, 10 min since (55% of 19)
BACK Sandfort back 4/10 after 6, 28 min since (178% of 16)
NEW K. Williams 14 to 19 min over the last 4
OKC availability going into 4/27 · 1 day's restBACK Gilgeous-Alexande back 4/19 after 2, 35 min since (104% of 34)
BACK Holmgren back 4/19 after 2, 29 min since (99% of 29)
BACK Jal. Williams back 4/19 after 2, 26 min since (96% of 27)
BACK Mitchell back 4/19 after 2, 28 min since (106% of 26)
BACK Wallace back 4/19 after 2, 23 min since (86% of 26)
BACK Hartenstein back 4/19 after 2, 22 min since (90% of 24)
BACK Joe back 4/19 after 2, 17 min since (89% of 20)
BACK Caruso back 4/19 after 2, 20 min since (102% of 19)
BACK J. Williams back 4/19 after 2, 14 min since (73% of 19)
BACK Sandfort back 4/10 after 6, 28 min since (178% of 16)
OKC availability going into 5/05 · 7 days' restOUT Jal. Williams missed 2 since 4/25, out tonight
BACK Gilgeous-Alexande back 4/19 after 2, 36 min since (106% of 34)
BACK Holmgren back 4/19 after 2, 30 min since (104% of 29)
BACK Mitchell back 4/19 after 2, 29 min since (111% of 26)
BACK Wallace back 4/19 after 2, 23 min since (86% of 26)
BACK Hartenstein back 4/19 after 2, 24 min since (98% of 24)
BACK Joe back 4/19 after 2, 14 min since (71% of 20)
BACK Caruso back 4/19 after 2, 21 min since (109% of 19)
BACK J. Williams back 4/19 after 2, 13 min since (67% of 19)
OKC availability going into 5/07 · 1 day's restOUT Jal. Williams missed 3 since 4/25, out tonight
BACK Gilgeous-Alexande back 4/19 after 2, 36 min since (106% of 34)
BACK Holmgren back 4/19 after 2, 30 min since (104% of 29)
BACK Mitchell back 4/19 after 2, 29 min since (110% of 26)
BACK Wallace back 4/19 after 2, 22 min since (83% of 26)
BACK Hartenstein back 4/19 after 2, 24 min since (99% of 24)
BACK Joe back 4/19 after 2, 13 min since (68% of 20)
BACK Caruso back 4/19 after 2, 21 min since (108% of 19)
BACK J. Williams back 4/19 after 2, 14 min since (75% of 19)
OKC availability going into 5/09 · 1 day's restOUT Jal. Williams missed 4 since 4/25, out tonight
OKC availability going into 5/11 · 1 day's restOUT Jal. Williams missed 5 since 4/25, out tonight
OKC availability going into 5/18 · 6 days' restOUT Jal. Williams missed 6 since 4/25, returns tonight: 37 min (137% of 27)
OKC availability going into 5/20 · 1 day's restOUT K. Williams missed 2 since 5/11, out tonight
BACK Jal. Williams back 5/18 after 6, 37 min since (137% of 27)
OKC availability going into 5/22 · 1 day's restOUT K. Williams missed 3 since 5/11, returns tonight: 2 min (11% of 14)
BACK Jal. Williams back 5/18 after 6, 22 min since (82% of 27)
NEW Caruso 19 to 24 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 1-4 over their last five, scoring 97 a night and allowing 105, shooting 45 percent and 33 from three, 21 free throws a game; James at 23 and Reaves at 19 a game. One day's rest. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 107, shooting 51 percent and 40 from three, 23 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 30 and Holmgren at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Jal. Williams (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 17 times a game to OKC's 12 and the arc, OKC at 40 percent from three to the Lakers' 33. Call it OKC 113, the Lakers 108.
4/29 vs HOU 93-99 — LAL notes
LAL lost 93-99. LAL shot 42% (32 of 76) to HOU's 44%, 7 of 27 from three. LAL turned it over 15 times to HOU's 10, and HOU turned those into 10 steals. James led with 25 (9 of 20, 0 of 6 from three, 7 of 10 at the line); Reaves added 22, Ayton 18. Q1 was theirs, 28-21, but the other 3 periods went 78-65 against them. They led by as many as 11. Hayes's -8 in 10 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/01 @ HOU 98-78 — LAL notes
LAL won 98-78. LAL shot 40% (36 of 89) to HOU's 35%, 12 of 28 from three. L. James led with 28 (10 of 25, 2 of 5 from three, 6 of 8 at the line); Hachimura added 21, Reaves 15. The hinge was Q2, 26-13: a lead of 5 became 18, and the lead reached 29. L. James was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
5/05 @ OKC 90-108 — LAL notes
LAL lost 90-108. LAL shot 41% (35 of 85) to OKC's 49%, 10 of 30 from three. James led with 27 (12 of 17, 3 of 6 from three); Hachimura added 18, Smart 12. Q2 was theirs, 27-30, but the other 3 periods went 78-63 against them. Hachimura's -21 in 37 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/07 @ OKC 107-125 — LAL notes
LAL lost 107-125. LAL shot 50% (39 of 78) to OKC's 56%, 11 of 29 from three. LAL turned it over 20 times to OKC's 12, and OKC turned those into 12 steals. Reaves led with 31 (10 of 16, 3 of 6 from three, 8 of 10 at the line); James added 23, Hachimura 16. Q2 was theirs, 35-30, turning a 4-point deficit into a 1-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 95-72 against them. Reaves's -20 in 38 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/09 vs OKC 108-131 — LAL notes
LAL lost 108-131. LAL shot 47% (38 of 81) to OKC's 56%, 14 of 30 from three, and went to the line 25 times to OKC's 10 — 18 points from the stripe to their 8. LAL turned it over 16 times to OKC's 9, and OKC turned those into 12 steals. Hachimura led with 21 (7 of 14, 5 of 8 from three); L. James added 19, Kennard 18. Q2 was theirs, 34-26, turning a 6-point deficit into a 2-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 105-74 against them. Hachimura's -25 in 39 minutes was the worst on the floor.
5/11 vs OKC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 1-4 over their last five, scoring 99 a night and allowing 108, shooting 44 percent and 38 from three, 22 free throws a game; James at 24 and Reaves at 19 a game. That is 3 straight losses. Without Vanderbilt (2 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 107, shooting 53 percent and 42 from three, 20 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 27 and Mitchell at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Jal. Williams (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 16 times a game to OKC's 12 and the arc, OKC at 42 percent from three to the Lakers' 38. Call it OKC 115, the Lakers 108.
4/25 @ PHX 121-109 — OKC notes
OKC won 121-109. OKC shot 49% (45 of 91) to PHX's 44%, 12 of 37 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 42 (15 of 18, 1 of 3 from three, 11 of 12 at the line); Mitchell added 15, Caruso 13. The hinge was Q1, 33-28: from level to 5 ahead, and the lead reached 16. J. Williams was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
4/27 @ PHX 131-122 — OKC notes
OKC won 131-122. OKC shot 54% (44 of 82) to PHX's 53%, 17 of 34 from three, and went to the line 30 times to PHX's 16 — 26 points from the stripe to their 12. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 31 (10 of 17, 2 of 4 from three, 9 of 11 at the line); Holmgren added 24, Mitchell 22. The hinge was Q1, 37-33: from level to 4 ahead, and the lead reached 16. Mitchell was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
5/05 vs LAL 108-90 — OKC notes
OKC won 108-90. OKC shot 49% (42 of 85) to LAL's 41%, 13 of 30 from three. Holmgren led with 24 (9 of 17); Gilgeous-Alexander added 18, Mitchell 18. The hinge was Q4, 24-18: a lead of 12 became 18, and the lead reached 21. Caruso was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
5/07 vs LAL 125-107 — OKC notes
OKC won 125-107. OKC shot 56% (45 of 81) to LAL's 50%, 14 of 36 from three. OKC turned it over 12 times to LAL's 20. Holmgren led with 22 (7 of 11, 3 of 5 from three, 5 of 7 at the line); Gilgeous-Alexander added 22, Mitchell 20. The hinge was Q3, 36-22: OKC came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 13, and the lead reached 20. OKC trailed 57-58 at the half and won the second half 68-49. Holmgren was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
5/09 @ LAL 131-108 — OKC notes
OKC won 131-108. OKC shot 56% (53 of 94) to LAL's 47%, 17 of 38 from three, and got to the line 10 times to LAL's 25. OKC turned it over 9 times to LAL's 16. Mitchell led with 24 (10 of 17, 2 of 4 from three); Gilgeous-Alexander added 23, Holmgren 18. The hinge was Q3, 33-20: OKC came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 11, and the lead reached 27. OKC trailed 57-59 at the half and won the second half 74-49. Hartenstein was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
5/11 @ LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 1-4 over their last five, scoring 99 a night and allowing 108, shooting 44 percent and 38 from three, 22 free throws a game; James at 24 and Reaves at 19 a game. That is 3 straight losses. Without Vanderbilt (2 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 107, shooting 53 percent and 42 from three, 20 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 27 and Mitchell at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Jal. Williams (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 16 times a game to OKC's 12 and the arc, OKC at 42 percent from three to the Lakers' 38. Call it OKC 115, the Lakers 108.
5/18 vs SAS — 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 122 a night and allowing 107, shooting 53 percent and 43 from three, 20 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 26 and Mitchell at 22 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Jal. Williams (6 straight). 6 days' rest. San Antonio comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 105, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 29 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 22 and Castle at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. 2 days' rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the line, where San Antonio takes 29 free throws a game to OKC's 20 and the arc, OKC at 43 percent from three to San Antonio's 38. Call it OKC 115, San Antonio 114, San Antonio keeping it close.
5/20 vs SAS — 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 119 a night and allowing 107, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 18 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 24 and Mitchell at 19 a game. One day's rest. San Antonio comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 109, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 29 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 26 and Fox at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 9 a night. One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the glass, where San Antonio has been plus-9 a night and OKC minus-3 and the line, where San Antonio takes 29 free throws a game to OKC's 18. Call it OKC 116, San Antonio 113, San Antonio keeping it close.
5/22 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 111, shooting 49 percent and 36 from three, 25 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 22 and Castle at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 11 a night. Without Fox (2 straight). One day's rest. OKC comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 112, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 21 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 27 and Mitchell at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest.
So: San Antonio wins, and the game turns on the glass, where San Antonio has been plus-11 a night and OKC minus-4 and the turnovers, San Antonio giving it away 17 times a game to OKC's 11. Call it San Antonio 117, OKC 114, OKC keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
OKCAC A. Caruso
AM A. Mitchell
AW A. Wiggins
CH C. Holmgren
CW C. Wallace
IH I. Hartenstein
IJ I. Joe
JM J. McCain
JW J. Williams
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
NT N. Topić
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
LALAR A. Reaves
AT A. Thiero
BJ B. James
DA D. Ayton
DK D. Knecht
JH J. Hayes
LJ L. James
LK L. Kennard
MK M. Kleber
MS M. Smart
NS N. Smith Jr.
RH R. Hachimura
OKC/LAL 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
Thunder charge past Lakers 131-108 in Game 3 for another blowout in the champs' 7-0 playoff run
LOS ANGELES -- — Ajay Mitchell had career playoff highs of 24 points and 10 assists, and the Oklahoma City Thunder extended their unbeaten playoff run to the brink of another Western Conference finals with a 131-108 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of the second round on Saturday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 23 points and nine assists for the Thunder, who coolly improved to 7-0 — both in these playoffs overall , and in their seven games this season against LeBron James and the Lakers. Oklahoma City is the NBA's sixth defending champion to start 7-0 in the following postseason after three wins over short-handed Los Angeles by a combined 59 points.
Game 3 was remarkably similar to Game 2 in many respects: The Lakers again had to fight desperately just to keep up with the champs into the third quarter, only for the Thunder to run away with their usual merciless efficiency when LA finally faltered. Chet Holmgren had 18 points and nine rebounds for Oklahoma City, which outscored the Lakers 33-20 in the third quarter and wasn't threatened at all down the stretch.
“I think (the first half) wasn't our best half, and in the locker room we just talked about it and knew that we had to adjust and be better,” said Mitchell, who continued his postseason emergence by scoring at least 14 points for the sixth consecutive game. “I think we did a great job coming out of the half.”
Game 4 is Monday night in Los Angeles.
James had 19 points, eight assists and six rebounds, while Austin Reaves had 17 points and nine assists. But both stars struggled from the field to a combined 12 for 32, and 21 points from Rui Hachimura weren't enough to keep LA in contention with the champs.
“We had moments in the first half that were really good for us,” James said. “In the third quarter, we didn't knock down shots, we didn't defend or get stops and allowed them to take us out of the game.”
Gilgeous-Alexander had his highest-scoring game of the series despite missing nine of his first 11 shots amid another concerted defensive effort by the Lakers on the NBA MVP, albeit with fewer double-teams than in the series' first two games.
“These obviously haven't been my best performances,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “But I think I've been able to help the team win, and that's most important. If the rest of the playoff run or the rest of my career looked like what it looked like the past few games, I'd be OK with it, because we won games.”
Luke Kennard added 18 points for the Lakers, who have lost five of their last six games since midway through the first round against Houston.
“They're an incredible basketball team,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “Third straight game we're right there after 2 1/2 quarters. We tried different lineups, different coverages. Still lost those minutes. Again, we've got to be better, but I'm not giving up on the series. We're going to go try to win on Monday. We're going to try to extend the series.”
NBA scoring champion Luka Doncic missed his 14th consecutive game for the Lakers since straining his hamstring April 2 in Oklahoma City. He is not thought to be close to returning from an injury that often requires two months of recovery.
Except for Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder all began Game 3 in another shooting groove. Los Angeles still surged to a small halftime lead behind 16 points from Hachimura.
Oklahoma City erased that lead with a methodical surge out of halftime, going up by 13 in the third quarter.
Third-leading scorer Jalen Williams missed his fifth straight game for the Thunder with a strained hamstring.