The Oklahoma City Thunder throttled the Los Angeles Lakers, 139–96, in a beating so thorough that it looked like a statement: all roads to the NBA title still lead to OKC.
Oklahoma City scored the first two points of the game and never looked back, unleashing a 16–2 run early for an 18–4 advantage that ultimately ballooned into a 44–21 first quarter. The Thunder continued the onslaught in the second, outscoring the Lakers, 38–30, for an 82–51 halftime cushion. OKC poured it on after intermission, putting up another 30 in the third while holding the Purple and Gold to just 16.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander fired a game-high 28 points for the Thunder, who shot 54% from the field and went 19-for-24 from deep. Isaiah Joe had 20 off the bench on six triples, while Lu Dort added 14 with four treys. Austin Reaves led the Lakers with 15 points, while LeBron James and Luka Dončić added 13 and 12, respectively.
Lakers Lose Luka in Face of Thunder Onslaught
For the Lakers, the Thunder’s belt-to-ass whooping might be the lesser of their concerns. More worrying, perhaps, is the noncontact injury Luka Dončić suffered in the third quarter that sent him to the showers.
Dončić, who had been making a strong late push for MVP, drove to the basket at the 7:42 mark of the third quarter but came up limping and clutching his left hamstring before lying on the floor in pain. He stayed on the floor for a few seconds before leaving for the locker room.
Curiously, Dončić had been clutching that same hamstring in the first half, leaving some to call into question JJ Redick’s decision to field the Slovenian in the second half, even in a blowout. According to Redick, Dončić “got worked on” and “was cleared” to play some more.
The Lakers have five games left and are in a battle with the Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, and Minnesota Timberwolves for the third and fourth seeds in the West. They will next face the Dallas Mavericks on Monday, while the Thunder will take on the Utah Jazz on the same day.
