3 Studs, 2 duds from tough Thunder loss to rival Dallas Mavericks

OKC falls to 11-3 after a 121-119 loss to the Mavericks.
Dallas Mavericks v Oklahoma City Thunder
Dallas Mavericks v Oklahoma City Thunder / Joshua Gateley/GettyImages
facebooktwitterreddit

Even though the OKC Thunder fought until the very end, sadly their efforts proved not enough as they dropped their third game of the season to the Dallas Mavericks by a final score of 121-119.

There was a moment late in the game where it seemed like Oklahoma City could win, as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander intentionally missed his second free throw with just seconds left in the game, but, upon securing the rebound, Lu Dort missed the game-winning triple at the buzzer. 

In a loss, you can assume multiple things went wrong, but that was not the case in this one as the team as a whole looked very good.

It just came down to the fact that OKC is severely injured and limited in the size department at the moment with all three of Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Jaylin Williams all sidelined due to health-related issues.

Despite the unfavorable outcome, there still proved to be multiple noteworthy takeaways and, more specifically, performances from the contest.

Studs and Duds from Thunder loss to Mavericks

Stud: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was one of two players that kept the team in this game throughout the entirety of the night. 

Finishing with an impressive 36 points, 8 assists, and 4 stocks, while knocking down a clutch three-ball late to make it a one-possession game, he was clearly showing MVP levels of play on the court. 

SGA started the game with a solid 11 points in the first quarter, along with a few defensive stops and assists, getting his teammates involved early. 

It also felt like any time he was off the floor, Dallas would go on a run, mainly by players he would guard like PJ Washington. 

Gilgeous-Alexander would have some clutch shots and acrobatic finishes at the rim and set up the team to win or send it to overtime with four seconds left on the clock.

Though it ended up not being enough in the end, but Shai left everything out on the court. 

Dud: Cason Wallace 

Cason Wallace as a whole did not play badly, but his shot was far from impressive

The sophomore would go 2-for-8 on the night and miss all five of his long-range attempts. He has been in a slump this whole year, and after Sunday's showing, he is 10-for-40 from deep on the year.

Fortunately, Wallace is doing everything else at a high level, such as perimeter defense and facilitating the rock, but his lack of conversion with his shot has caused the Thunder to be in far too many tight matchups when they should not be even close. 

Thankfully Oklahoma City is soon to be on a five-day break with no games following Wednesday's face-off with the Blazers, which should give the second-year guard time to work on his shot with shooting coach Chip Engelland. 

Stud: Dillon Jones 

Dillon Jones was not the rookie Thunder fans expected to impact this game against Dallas, but, surprisingly enough, he was. 

The forward easily had the best game of his young career against Dallas, finishing with 12 points, 3 assists, and showing improvement on his shot, knocking down two long-range attempts. 

His wingspan and physicality were desperately needed against the Mavericks, as OKC was getting outmanned and overwhelmed during the majority of the game. The Weber State product would provide some much-needed relief when he was on the floor. 

Jones seemed as if he's improved quite substantially in every facet of his game on Sunday, though it will take a few more games to truly tell if this was a fluke performance or legit progress. 

Either way, the first-round pick will more than likely see an uptick in minutes after this outing. 

Dud: Aaron Wiggins 

Aaron Wiggins pretty much did the same thing as Cason Wallace: Provided everything but shot-making.

Usually known for his efficiency, the wing struggled to hit a single shot on the night, finishing 2-for-9 shooting during his 25 minutes of action. 

Everything else was good, however, as he led the team in rebounds and finished with two steals and a block. 

In a close game like this one, though, he needs to be able to hit his shots, which he just could not do against Dallas. 

Like Wallace, Wiggins could really use this forthcoming break in play to work on his jump shot.

Stud: Jalen Williams

Jalen Williams came alive in the fourth quarter, something he made a name for himself doing last year.

Williams finished with 27 points on 64.7 percent shooting from the field while knocking down half of his attempts from distance. 

Having to play center at 6-foot-5 is no easy task, but Dub has risen to the task, as he limited Derrick Lively and Daniel Gafford to 17 points combined, even though they had the clear size advantage over him. 

In the fourth quarter, he came alive, knocking down back-to-back long-range shots to get OKC back in the game.

In the end, it did not matter as the team fell to 11-3, but J-Dub has really stepped up and is making a case for his first All-Star appearance.

manual