Player Grades: Thunder cruise past Pacers in team effort
. G. Oklahoma City Thunder. SHAI GILGEOUS-ALEXANDER. B+
Even when Shai starts out slow, he always finishes the game with an efficient 20-point game. In this game, SGA was just 2-for-8 shooting at half but somehow ended the game with 23 points shooting 7-of-17. Defensively is where Shai stood out, recording three steals for the 11th time this season.
. G. Oklahoma City Thunder. JOSH GIDDEY. A-
Josh Giddey has been on fire lately and this game is yet another great performance. Giddey did a great job finding his teammates, evidenced by his 11 assists in this game. His 22 points mark his fourth consecutive 20-point game.
Oklahoma City Thunder. LUGUENTZ DORT. A. . G/F
Lu Dort did a fantastic job dissecting the Indiana defense with his backdoor cuts. He converted on three of his five three-point attempts and impacted the game, as always, on the defensive side of the basketball. Lu even forced an offensive foul, which is a skill that he’s pretty much mastered and an underrated attribute to his game.
Oklahoma City Thunder. JALEN WILLIAMS. B. . F
Jalen Williams was overall really solid for the Thunder in this game. Offensively he filled the stat sheet with 11 points, six rebounds, and six assists. Defensively he was aggressive and active, recording four steals on the night. He was all over the floor for OKC and even led the squad in minutes played.
F. Oklahoma City Thunder. KENRICH WILLIAMS. A.
Oklahoma City went full small-ball, starting Kenrich Williams at the center position. It seemed like a bold decision by head coach Mark Daigneault, but it ended up being genius. Having Williams on the floor spaced out the Thunder offense and allowed cutters to have space around the basket. Williams executed the offensive game plan to perfection and walked away with a new career-high in assists and his second double-double in his last six games.