OKC Thunder push Jazz to the wire: Dort dominance tops 3 takeaways
By Brandon Dale
A dramatic ending and Dort career performance highlight three takeaways from the OKC Thunder loss to the Jazz in the entertaining home opener.
The OKC Thunder lost dramatically as the Utah Jazz beat OKC in the final seconds as Donovan Mitchell showed his poise down the stretch, hitting a floater with time expiring. It was undoubtedly one of those games that felt like a win instead of a loss just based on the effort displayed by OKC.
Luguentz Dort led the way scoring 26 points in 31 minutes, shooting 9 of 11 from the field, and hitting five 3-pointers along the way. His defense was spectacular as he held Donovan Mitchell to eight made baskets in 34 minutes of action. Dort looked in midseason form tonight, and it was the home opener!
Player grades offered more insight into the Thunder starters, best reserve, and opponent.
Three takeaways from OKC Thunder loss to Jazz:
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was exceptional tonight as he was in command of the OKC offense. Shai didn’t have the best shooting night but he was able to do some damage, putting up 23 points in 36 minutes. His slow methodical brand of basketball looks extremely fluid next to George Hill as they both were able to attack the basket with relative ease.
Hill’s deliberate brand of basketball is a welcomed addition after losing so much veteran leadership last season. The veteran point guard scored 14 points in 25 minutes of action but filled up the stat sheet, amassing four assists and five rebounds to round out his night.
OKC shot exceptionally well from 3-point land in the first half going 10 of 22, but the Thunder’s 3-point field goal percentage took a massive hit in the second half. OKC only made five more 3-point baskets, going 5 of 16 in the second half.
On a high note, OKC was able to get to the paint tonight, scoring 48 points with relative ease. Keeping this in mind, TI takes a look at 3 takeaways from the 110-109 loss to the Utah Jazz.