New year, new Josh Giddey?
It may have still been 2023 in Oklahoma City as the Thunder celebrated New Year’s Eve with a 124-108 win over the Brooklyn Nets, but back home in Australia it is already 2024.
And Giddey brought in the new year with one of his best games of the 2023-24 campaign, making a season-high (and tied career-high) four 3-pointers to finish with 20 points.
Giddey also had six rebounds and five assists in the win, which was Oklahoma City’s fourth in a row as the Thunder improved to 22-9 with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (24 points) leading the way.
What was particularly impressive about Giddey’s performance was the way he adjusted to what the Brooklyn defence threw at him, finding other ways to impact the game if the outside shooting wasn’t working.
Watch an average of 9 NBA Regular Season games per week LIVE on ESPN, available via Kayo. New to Kayo? Start Your Free Trial Today >
Thunder end Nuggets’ six-game win streak | 00:57
Defence seemed optional early in Monday’s game as the Nets jumped out to a 36-33 lead after the first quarter, although it could’ve been more given the way Brooklyn opened the game.
The Nets led 18-8 after just four minutes, with Mikal Bridges heavily involved early as he scored eight points to go with a pair of assists.
Brooklyn had already made four 3-pointers by then and finished the quarter shooting 60 per cent from downtown as Bridges led all scorers with 15 points while Cam Thomas added 10 points off the bench.
Gilgeous-Alexander, meanwhile, had 13 points for the Thunder.
Chet Holmgren, who went without a single shot in the first quarter, was everywhere early for OKC in the second, getting involved immediately as he found Vasilije Micic for a jump shot.
Holmgren then made his first shot of the night, going on to add another four points and six rebounds in the quarter.
Oklahoma City went into the half up 59-56 as Brooklyn went from shooting over 61 per cent from the field in the first quarter to just 25.9 per cent in the second.
The Nets went into the third quarter desperately needing some consistent production from other players, with Bridges and Thomas combining for 33 of their 56 points at halftime.
Spencer Dinwiddie answered the call early in the third, making a driving jump shot to score Brooklyn’s first points of the period before adding another four alongside an assist and steal.
Dinwiddie’s early burst had Brooklyn right with Oklahoma City a few minutes into the third as Giddey started to make shots, first draining a 3-pointer and then finishing twice closer to the rim to bring up seven points in the first five minutes.
Giddey also grabbed two defensive boards that then led to points on the other end, with the Australian even dishing it out to Gilgeous-Alexander for one of the buckets.
That Gilgeous-Alexander score had the Thunder well in control, up 78-67 with 5:37 on the clock, and the Nets didn’t get much closer before the end of the third quarter as a Holmgren 3-pointer saw OKC take a 89-79 advantage into the final period.
Gilgeous-Alexander started the fourth quarter on the bench but the Thunder were able to maintain their lead without him, ahead 105-92 when the superstar guard re-entered the game.
At that point there was just under seven minutes left in the game and Giddey immediately made a 3-pointer when play resumed, seeing OKC push its lead out to 108-92.
Giddey made another 3-pointer soon after while Lu Dort added a pair of 3s of his own too, making it hard for the Nets to get any closer to chipping away at the deficit.
The Thunder already had the win wrapped up but were still hustling on every possession, with Dort missing a wide-open dunk only for Giddey to get the offensive rebound and find his teammate for the second of his 3-pointers.
LAKERS’ STRUGGLES CONTINUE AGAINST PELICANS
Elsewhere, the Los Angeles Lakers’ struggles after winning the In-Season Tournament have continued after a comprehensive 129-109 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.
The heavy defeat came despite 34 points and eight assists from LeBron James, while Anthony Davis (20 points, 10 rebounds, five blocks) and Austin Reaves (20 points, nine assists) were also heavily involved.
Reaves had to take on added responsibility too having started the second half in place of Rui Hachimura (left calf strain).
Taurean Prince, meanwhile, made a team-high four 3-pointers to finish on 15 points.
Defence though was the biggest issue for L.A., who gave up 42 to the Pelicans in the first quarter after CJ McCollum caught fire from deep, making five 3-pointers in the opening nine minutes of the game.
It set the tone for what would be a tough night for the Lakers, who allowed a season-high 74 points in the first half while scoring 57 of their own.
New Orleans’ big three of Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum combined for 74 points, with the Pelicans now 4-0 when all three score 20-plus points in games.
Meanwhile, Herb Jones — already known for his elite perimeter defence and improved finishing at the rim — flashed his potential from deep as he made a trio of 3-pointers in the win.
Jose Alvarado though was a complete menace on the defensive end off the bench, racking up four steals and two blocks as he caused all kinds of problems for the Lakers.
And of course, Alvarado’s defensive stops were making life easy for the Pelicans on offence too, as was the case when he picked James to set up an Ingram 3-pointer.
The Lakers are now 17-17 overall and have gone 3-8 since winning the In-Season Tournament while the Pelicans improved to a 19-14 record with Monday’s victory and are 7-3 since losing to L.A. in the IST.
CELTICS STORM TO VICTORY, TRAE HITS 40 IN WIN
In other news, the Boston Celtics took care of business with a dominant 134-101 win over the lowly San Antonio Spurs.
Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum combined for 49 points as Boston re-established itself as the leading contender in the Eastern Conference, improving to a 26-6 record.
Earlier, the Atlanta Hawks snuck past the Washington Wizards 130-126 off the back of 40 points and 13 assists from superstar guard Trae Young.
Kyle Kuzma, who had 31 points halfway through the third quarter, finished with 38 in defeat.
OTHER SCORES
Phoenix Suns 112 defeat Orlando Magic 107
Sacramento Kings 123 defeat Memphis Grizzlies 92
Discussion about this post