Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder beat Clippers for first win of season: 5 takeaways

The ball found Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the top of the arc as the final seconds of the third quarter ticked away.

Gilgeous-Alexander had flummoxed the Clippers at the rim and in the mid-range, but he hadn’t taken a 3-pointer.

Until he swished that momentous triple at the end of the third, and held up three fingers before bumping chests with Darius Bazley.

The Thunder (1-3) notched its first win of the season Tuesday night, beating the Clippers 108-94 thanks to a dominant third-quarter run.

In a five-minute third-quarter stretch, the Thunder outscored the Clippers 21-0. OKC’s lead grew from 53-48 to 74-48.

That 26-point lead was the Thunder’s biggest of the game.

A 21-0 run? That was news to Thunder coach Mark Daigneault.

“I didn’t know it was 21-0,” Daigneault said. “Stops, got out and ran, played with great flow, thought the ball really moved, five guys working to get a good shot. But the defense was the catalyst there.”

OKC held L.A. to 42% shooting, and 32% shooting from 3-point range. The Thunder had 12 steals and eight blocks.

The Clippers clawed back in the fourth quarter, but the Thunder held on despite shooting just 4-of-30 (13%) from 3-point range.

That’s right, a 14-point win on 13% 3-point shooting. According to ESPN Stats & Info, it was the fifth-lowest 3-point percentage ever by a winning team (minimum 25 3-point attempts).

The Thunder’s 14-point win was the largest margin of victory ever for a team that shot less than 15% from 3-point range.

OKC didn’t make many threes, but SGA’s third-quarter buzzer beater meant the most.

Gilgeous-Alexander had 33 points, eight assists, five rebounds, three blocks and three steals.

He shot 9-of-9 from the free-throw line, and is a perfect 20-of-20 from the foul line this season.

More:'One bone': How a Nigerian saying explains Eugene Omoruyi's NBA path to OKC Thunder

Tre Mann shines

Tre Mann flew in from the free throw line to snatch an offensive rebound, but he had trouble corralling the board.

Mann chased down the ball and saved it from going out of bounds.

The Thunder maintained possession, and later, Gilgeous-Alexander rifled a pass to Mann, who drained a corner 3-pointer.

It was the most impressive possession of Mann’s young career.

“It was cool,” Mann said. “I just crashed, the ball came in my area and I grabbed it.”

As Mann saved the ball near the crowd, “I got my hand in some type of drink,” Mann said with a laugh. “Shai found me in the corner and I just knocked down a three for him.”

Mann scored 25 points on 10-of-24 shooting. He also took two charges, a nod toward Mann’s increased buy-in on the defensive end.

“He started against (D’Angelo) Russell on Sunday and was not where he needs to be,” Daigneault said. “He’s capable of being much better than that, and so we challenged him again … If we’re gonna have him out there with really good teams, he’s gotta be able to handle those matchups and I thought he did a really good job tonight.”

Mann credited his progress as a defender as “knowing that I had to do it.”

“Coach Mark made it clear when I first got here that I had to be a defender if I wanted to play.”

More:Thunder vs. Timberwolves: Five takeaways from OKC's loss to Minnesota in NBA home opener

Taking care of the ball

The turnover count: Clippers 18, Thunder 5

Points off turnovers: Thunder 23, Clippers 3

The extra possessions gave the Thunder extra shots. OKC had 110 field goal attempts. The Clippers had 83.

“It was huge,” Daigneault said of the turnover discrepancy. “Obviously we didn’t shoot the ball very well tonight from three, and I thought the combination of our defense, ball control with the turnovers and offensive rebounding is what offset a really bad shooting night.”

More:Thunder vs. Nuggets: Five takeaways from OKC's road loss to Nikola Jokic, Denver

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in, Kawhi Leonard out

The game flipped in a 20-minute stretch from 5:05 to 5:25 p.m. That’s right, more than 90 minutes before tip-off.

First, the Clippers unexpectedly ruled out Kawhi Leonard (right knee injury management). Clippers coach Ty Lue told reporters that Leonard experienced stiffness in shootaround and that Leonard will fly home to Los Angeles on Wednesday.

At 5:25, Daigneault announced that Gilgeous-Alexander (left hip contusion) was good to play. Gilgeous-Alexander had been listed as out earlier in the day, and he was upgraded to questionable before Daigneault ruled him in.

“I felt pretty good yesterday, but I didn’t feel all the way there,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “And then when I woke up this morning I felt really good.”

The Thunder was still without Josh Giddey (right ankle sprain) and Jalen Williams (right orbital bone fracture), but the Clippers were missing stars Leonard, Paul George (non-COVID illness) and a valuable third starter in Marcus Morris Sr. (personal reasons).

“Anytime top-line guys are out it’s a great opportunity for the rest of the team,” Daigneault said. “Usually you get a pretty good punch. And this particular team is highly capable. We’re taking them very seriously, obviously.”

More:Tramel: Old Testament wisdom says this Thunder season is about observing, not judging

Thunder tip-ins

➤ The Thunder started Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Tre Mann, Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl. It was OKC’s fourth starting lineup in as many games.

➤ Both teams started a T. Mann — Tre Mann and Terance Mann. Tre went to Florida and Terance went to Florida State.

➤ Five of the 10 starters wore a headband, including the two Manns.

➤ Reggie Jackson still gets booed in Oklahoma City. The former Thunder guard had a rough game, shooting 4-of-17 from the field.

➤ Two-way players Lindy Waters III and Eugene Omoruyi were not with the team Tuesday night. Two-way players can play a maximum of 50 games with their big-league club.

➤ Chet Holmgren (foot surgery) is down to using one crutch. He stood under the Thunder’s basket in pregame warmups.

➤ Clippers owner Steve Ballmer sat courtside on the baseline near the Clippers’ bench.

➤ The NBA released its annual roster survey Tuesday. The Thunder is the youngest team in the NBA with an average age of 23.14 years old. The Rockets (23.58) and Spurs (23.84) are the second- and third-youngest teams.

➤ The Bucks, with an average age of 29.47, are the oldest team in the league. The Bucks also have the highest average number of seasons of NBA experience (7.24).

➤ The Thunder is not only the youngest team in the NBA, but also the least experienced (1.94 average seasons of experiences).

➤ Kentucky, with 27 NBA players, is the most-represented college in the NBA. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the Thunder’s only player from Kentucky.

➤ The three most common jersey numbers in the NBA? No. 3 (22 players), No. 5 (22 players) and No. 8 (22 players). The Thunder has a No. 3 (Josh Giddey), a No. 5 (Lu Dort) and a No. 8 (Jalen Williams).

➤ Omoruyi is the only No. 97 in the NBA. He’s the second No. 97 in NBA history (Brodric Thomas, 2021-22 Celtics).

More:OKC Thunder schedule: How to watch the Thunder in 2022-23 NBA season

Listen to the latest Thunder Buddies podcast

Thunder vs. Clippers live updates

A Twitter List by joe_mussatto

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander beat LA Clippers for first win