Game ID: 22500064
Minnesota Timberwolves @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Wednesday, November 26, 2025 at 7:30 PM ET
Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
OKC 24 25 29 35 113MIN 17 22 32 34 105
MIN @ OKC ScoutingMIN @ 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 11/17 · 1 day's restOUT Wiggins missed 5 since 11/07, out tonight
BACK Dort back 11/15 after 5, 22 min since (84% of 26)
BACK Carlson back 11/12 after 3, 17 min since (145% of 12)
NEW Joe 20 to 27 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 11/19 · 1 day's restOUT Wiggins missed 6 since 11/07, out tonight
BACK Dort back 11/15 after 5, 25 min since (96% of 26)
BACK Carlson back 11/12 after 3, 15 min since (127% of 12)
NEW Joe 20 to 26 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 11/21 · 1 day's restOUT Wiggins missed 7 since 11/07, out tonight
BACK Dort back 11/15 after 5, 28 min since (106% of 26)
BACK Carlson back 11/12 after 3, 12 min since (106% of 12)
NEW Joe 20 to 26 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 11/23 · 1 day's restOUT Wiggins missed 8 since 11/07, out tonight
BACK Dort back 11/15 after 5, 26 min since (100% of 26)
BACK Carlson back 11/12 after 3, 12 min since (101% of 12)
NEW Joe 20 to 25 min over the last 5
OKC availability going into 11/26 · 2 days' restOUT Wiggins missed 9 since 11/07, out tonight
BACK Dort back 11/15 after 5, 25 min since (96% of 26)
OKC availability going into 11/28 · 1 day's restOUT Wiggins missed 10 since 11/07, out tonight
OKC availability going into 11/30 · 1 day's restOUT Wiggins missed 11 since 11/07, returns tonight: 20 min (104% of 19)
OUT Carlson missed 2 since 11/26, out tonight
OUT Dieng missed 2 since 11/26, out tonight
OKC availability going into 12/02 · 1 day's restOUT Hartenstein missed 2 since 11/28, out tonight
OUT Carlson missed 3 since 11/26, returns tonight: 3 min (22% of 12)
OUT Dieng missed 3 since 11/26, out tonight
BACK Wiggins back 11/30 after 11, 20 min since (104% of 19)
OKC availability going into 12/05 · 2 days' restOUT Hartenstein missed 3 since 11/28, out tonight
OUT Caruso missed 2 since 11/30, out tonight
OUT Dieng missed 4 since 11/26, returns tonight: 22 min (197% of 11)
BACK Wiggins back 11/30 after 11, 21 min since (109% of 19)
BACK Carlson back 12/02 after 3, 3 min since (22% of 12)
MIN availability going into 11/17 · 1 day's restOUT Shannon Jr. missed 6 since 11/05, out tonight
MIN availability going into 11/19 · 1 day's restOUT Shannon Jr. missed 7 since 11/05, out tonight
MIN availability going into 11/21 · 1 day's restOUT Shannon Jr. missed 8 since 11/05, out tonight
NEW Clark 13 to 18 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 11/24 · 2 days' restOUT Shannon Jr. missed 9 since 11/05, returns tonight: 7 min (52% of 14)
MIN availability going into 11/26 · 1 day's restOUT Hyland missed 2 since 11/21, out tonight
BACK Shannon Jr. back 11/24 after 9, 7 min since (52% of 14)
MIN availability going into 11/29 · 2 days' restOUT Hyland missed 3 since 11/21, out tonight
BACK Shannon Jr. back 11/24 after 9, 12 min since (86% of 14)
MIN availability going into 11/30 · back-to-backOUT Hyland missed 4 since 11/21, returns tonight: 2 min (9% of 16)
BACK Shannon Jr. back 11/24 after 9, 14 min since (98% of 14)
MIN availability going into 12/02 · 1 day's restBACK Hyland back 11/30 after 4, 2 min since (9% of 16)
BACK Shannon Jr. back 11/24 after 9, 13 min since (95% of 14)
MIN availability going into 12/04 · 1 day's restBACK Hyland back 11/30 after 4, 2 min since (9% of 16)
BACK Shannon Jr. back 11/24 after 9, 12 min since (87% of 14)
NEW Edwards 35 to 40 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 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 102, shooting 52 percent and 43 from three, 22 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 31 and Holmgren at 18 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Wiggins (9 straight). 2 days' rest. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 98, shooting 45 percent and 32 from three, 27 free throws a game; Edwards at 28 and Randle at 21 a game. Without Hyland (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 43 percent from three to Minnesota's 32 and the line, where Minnesota takes 27 free throws a game to OKC's 22. Call it OKC 115, Minnesota 106.
11/17 @ NOP 126-109 — OKC notes
OKC won 126-109. OKC shot 49% (43 of 87) to NOP's 49%, 17 of 42 from three, and went to the line 28 times to NOP's 15 — 23 points from the stripe to their 13. Holmgren led with 26 (10 of 14, 3 of 6 from three); Gilgeous-Alexander added 23, Dort 17. The hinge was Q1, 49-24: from level to 25 ahead, and the lead reached 30. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +32.
11/19 vs SAC 113-99 — OKC notes
OKC won 113-99. OKC shot 47% (41 of 88) to SAC's 44%, 10 of 38 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 33 (12 of 24, 1 of 3 from three, 8 of 10 at the line); Holmgren added 21, Dort 14. The hinge was Q2, 31-25: a lead of 2 became 8, and the lead reached 18. Mitchell was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
11/21 @ UTA 144-112 — OKC notes
OKC won 144-112. OKC shot 61% (51 of 83) to UTA's 48%, 23 of 37 from three. OKC turned it over 13 times to UTA's 27. The glass went 26-39 against them. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 31 (9 of 14, 3 of 3 from three, 10 of 12 at the line); Joe added 16, Williams 15. The hinge was Q3, 43-20: OKC came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 22, and the lead reached 36. OKC trailed 67-68 at the half and won the second half 77-44. Mitchell was the night's best plus/minus at +29.
11/23 vs POR 122-95 — OKC notes
OKC won 122-95. OKC shot 53% (45 of 85) to POR's 37%, 15 of 36 from three. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 37 (13 of 18, 2 of 3 from three, 9 of 9 at the line); Mitchell added 20, Joe 10. The hinge was Q1, 39-18: from level to 21 ahead, and the lead reached 36. Gilgeous-Alexander was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
11/26 vs MIN 113-105 — OKC notes
OKC won 113-105. OKC shot 48% (38 of 80) to MIN's 41%, 7 of 26 from three. OKC turned it over 7 times to MIN's 14. Gilgeous-Alexander led with 40 (12 of 19, 15 of 17 at the line); Hartenstein added 15, Mitchell 13. The hinge was Q1, 24-17: from level to 7 ahead. Mitchell was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
11/28 vs PHX — 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 124 a night and allowing 104, shooting 52 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 33 and Holmgren at 15 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Wiggins (10 straight). One day's rest. Phoenix comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 108, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 21 free throws a game; Brooks at 20 and Booker at 19 a game. Without Allen (6 straight), Green (9 straight), Dunn (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the line, where OKC takes 27 free throws a game to Phoenix's 21 and the turnovers, Phoenix giving it away 17 times a game to OKC's 13. Call it OKC 118, Phoenix 108, OKC by 10.
11/30 @ POR — 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 112 a night and allowing 117, shooting 43 percent and 31 from three, 30 free throws a game; Avdija at 26 and Grant at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Holiday (7 straight), Henderson (19 straight), Thybulle (14 straight). 3 days' rest. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 106, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 27 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 36 and Holmgren at 14 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Wiggins (11 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Portland has been plus-8 a night and OKC minus-6 and the arc, OKC at 41 percent from three to Portland's 31. Call it OKC 119, Portland 112.
12/02 @ GSW — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Golden State comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 111, shooting 43 percent and 31 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ste. Curry at 28 and Butler III at 21 a game. Without Horford (3 straight). 2 days' rest. OKC comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 109, shooting 52 percent and 44 from three, 29 free throws a game; Gilgeous-Alexander at 34 and Holmgren at 14 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Hartenstein (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, OKC at 44 percent from three to Golden State's 31 and the line, where OKC takes 29 free throws a game to Golden State's 22. Call it OKC 116, Golden State 112, Golden State keeping it close.
12/05 vs DAL — 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 121 a night and allowing 109, shooting 51 percent and 40 from three, and living at the line: 29 free throws a game, Gilgeous-Alexander alone taking 9 to 17 of them while averaging 35.6. The wins came every which way, a 39-18 first quarter against Portland, a fourth-quarter comeback at Portland, a 31-18 second at Golden State, which is the mark of a team that does not need one particular quarter to go right. Dallas comes in hot in its own way: three straight wins, 131 at Denver on 56 percent shooting, Davis back and scoring (32, then 17), Flagg carrying real minutes (35, 24, 22), and a habit of owning the second quarter, 42-27 at Denver and 36-21 against Miami, both turning deficits into leads. The soft spots: Dallas gets to the line 18 times a game to OKC's 29, allows 115, and shot 39 percent on 97 attempts in its last loss.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on two things. The second quarter is Dallas's. Expect them within a possession or ahead at the half if Davis and Flagg get the ball inside and the threes fall at their 40 percent clip. Then the free-throw line decides it. OKC's edge there has been ten attempts a game, and Gilgeous-Alexander against a defense that allowed 24 and 26 free throws in its two recent losses is the worst matchup on the floor for Dallas. Call it OKC 122, Dallas 112, the Thunder pulling away in the third, Gilgeous-Alexander over 30 with double-digit free throws, and the glass (OKC lost it 51-37 to Phoenix) the only way Dallas keeps it inside five.
11/17 vs DAL 120-96 — MIN notes
MIN won 120-96. MIN shot 45% (44 of 97) to DAL's 40%, 14 of 44 from three, and got to the line 25 times to DAL's 31. The glass went 59-43 for them. Reid led with 22 (9 of 14, 3 of 6 from three); Gobert added 15, McDaniels 15. The hinge was Q3, 37-22: a lead of 17 became 32. DiVincenzo was the night's best plus/minus at +35.
11/19 vs WAS 120-109 — MIN notes
MIN won 120-109. MIN shot 45% (42 of 94) to WAS's 49%, 13 of 38 from three, and went to the line 32 times to WAS's 12 — 23 points from the stripe to their 9. MIN turned it over 9 times to WAS's 17. Randle led with 32 (11 of 19, 1 of 4 from three, 9 of 13 at the line); Reid added 28, Edwards 18. The hinge was Q2, 37-17: a lead of 5 became 25. Reid was the night's best plus/minus at +16.
11/21 @ PHX 113-114 — MIN notes
MIN lost 113-114. MIN shot 45% (39 of 86) to PHX's 48%, 12 of 37 from three. MIN turned it over 19 times to PHX's 27. Edwards led with 41 (14 of 24, 5 of 11 from three, 8 of 12 at the line); Randle added 20, McDaniels 13. Q3 was theirs, 33-19, turning a 13-point deficit into a 1-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 95-80 against them.
11/24 @ SAC 112-117 — MIN notes
MIN lost 112-117 in 1 overtime. MIN shot 41% (40 of 97) to SAC's 43%, 13 of 42 from three, and got to the line 22 times to SAC's 28. Edwards led with 43 (16 of 29, 5 of 11 from three, 6 of 8 at the line); Randle added 17, DiVincenzo 17. Q1 was theirs, 27-23, but the other 4 periods went 94-85 against them. They led by as many as 14. Edwards's -12 in 40 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/26 @ OKC 105-113 — MIN notes
MIN lost 105-113. MIN shot 41% (33 of 80) to OKC's 48%, 17 of 37 from three. MIN turned it over 14 times to OKC's 7, and OKC turned those into 8 steals. Edwards led with 31 (9 of 19, 5 of 10 from three, 8 of 12 at the line); Shannon Jr. added 18, Reid 12. Q3 was theirs, 32-29, the deficit cut from 10 to 7, but the other 3 periods went 84-73 against them. Conley's -17 in 13 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/29 vs BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 110, shooting 44 percent and 35 from three, 30 free throws a game; Edwards at 29 and Randle at 18 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Hyland (3 straight). 2 days' rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 115, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 21 free throws a game; Brown at 31 and Pritchard at 20 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the arc, Boston at 42 percent from three to Minnesota's 35 and the line, where Minnesota takes 30 free throws a game to Boston's 21. Call it Minnesota 115, Boston 112, Boston keeping it close.
11/30 vs SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 114, shooting 44 percent and 38 from three, 29 free throws a game; Edwards at 34 and Randle at 19 a game. Without Hyland (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. San Antonio comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 115, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 27 free throws a game; Fox at 26 and Vassell at 20 a game. Without Castle (5 straight), Wembanyama (6 straight). One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 14 times a game to San Antonio's 11. Call it Minnesota 116, San Antonio 115, San Antonio keeping it close.
12/02 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 123, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 25 free throws a game; Williamson at 24 and Bey at 20 a game. That is 3 straight losses. Without Murphy III (2 straight), Jones (5 straight), Poole (14 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 114, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 25 free throws a game; Edwards at 37 and Randle at 17 a game. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 114 a night to New Orleans's 123 and the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 15 times a game to New Orleans's 12. Call it Minnesota 117, New Orleans 115, New Orleans keeping it close.
12/04 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 130, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 27 free throws a game; Williamson at 24 and Murphy III at 22 a game. That is 4 straight losses. Without Williamson (2 straight), Jones (6 straight), Poole (15 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 120, shooting 48 percent and 41 from three, 24 free throws a game; Edwards at 38 and Randle at 16 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 120 a night to New Orleans's 130. Call it Minnesota 122, New Orleans 119, New Orleans keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
OKCAC A. Caruso
AM A. Mitchell
CH C. Holmgren
CW C. Wallace
IH I. Hartenstein
IJ I. Joe
JW J. Williams
KW K. Williams
LD L. Dort
SG S. Gilgeous-Alexander
MINAE A. Edwards
DD D. DiVincenzo
JC J. Clark
JM J. McDaniels
JR J. Randle
MC M. Conley
NR N. Reid
RD R. Dillingham
RG R. Gobert
TS T. Shannon Jr.
OKC/MIN 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 40 points while ill, leads Thunder to 10th straight win
OKLAHOMA CITY -- — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points despite being ill and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 113-105 on Wednesday night in an NBA Cup Game.
Gilgeous-Alexander, who was listed as questionable on the injury report, made 12 of 19 field goals and 15 of 17 free throws.
Oklahoma City won its 10th straight and became just the fifth team in NBA history to start a season 18-1. The Thunder improved to 4-0 in West Group A and are well-positioned to reach the knockout round.
Gilgeous-Alexander has scored at least 20 points in 91 consecutive games, the third-longest streak in NBA history behind two streaks by Wilt Chamberlain . Gilgeous-Alexander can match Chamberlain’s second-place run of 92 straight on Friday against Phoenix.
Anthony Edwards had 31 points and eight rebounds and kept the Timberwolves in the game by making several difficult shots, but couldn't stop Minnesota from losing its third straight. Minnesota made just 22 of 37 free throws.
It was a rematch of the Western Conference finals series last season that the Thunder won 4-1. Last time the Timberwolves visited the Paycom Center, they got beat 124-94 in Game 5 as the Thunder clinched the West .
Oklahoma City’s Kenrich Williams , who had not played this season because of a left knee injury, got his first action in the first quarter.
The Thunder led 24-17 at the end of the opening quarter. It was Minnesota’s second-lowest point total in any quarter this season.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 19 points in the first half to help the Thunder take a 49-39 lead.
Minnesota rallied in the third quarter and tied it at 54 and again at 56, but the Thunder took a 78-71 lead into the fourth.
Minnesota was within one in the final minute after Edwards made a contested 3-pointer, but Chet Holmgren 's corner three put the Thunder up four with 38 seconds remaining. Oklahoma City outscored Minnesota 8-1 in the last 60 seconds.