Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault commended his team’s ongoing commitment to defense in the NBA Cup quarter-final win against the Dallas Mavericks. While reporters peppered Daigneault with questions about his team defense on Mavericks stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, he downplayed it, reminding everyone this level of defense isn’t new. Chet Holmgren’s pregame speech for the Thunder was an unexpected touch, but the Thunder defense remains strong.
After the Thunder’s defense held Luka Doncic to 16 points on 5-of-15 shooting, including 2-of-8 from deep in a 118-104 win on Tuesday, Daigneault reminded everyone of his team’s elite defense.
“We’ve played like this for a good stretch of time now. So, this didn’t feel different to me at all,” Daigneault said. “I thought we were pretty primed up with our last week, our west-coach trip. We’ve been playing hard and together for a sustained stretch of time right now. And we were able to draw on that tonight, which was very helpful obviously in the game.”
Before beating the New Orleans Pelicans 119-109, the Thunder held the Toronto Raptors to 92 points in their 37-point win (192-92) on Dec. 5. Then, they held the Mavericks to 19 third-quarter points while outscoring them by 14 (33) before the final frame.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on ‘playoff feel’ of NBA Cup victory
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) shoots over Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) and center Dereck Lively II (2) during the first quarter at Paycom Center
Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault watched All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander score a game-high 39 points on 15-of-23 attempts, including 5-of-9 from deep. Gilgeous-Alexander says the NBA Cup quarter-final win against the Dallas Mavericks had a playoff vibe. Daigneault complimented his leading scorer for finding a healthy balance.
Gilgeous-Alexander also finished with eight rebounds, five assists, three steals, and one block. All five Thunder starters scored in double figures, including Jalen Williams with 18 points, Lu Dort and Cason Wallace with 11 points each, and Isaiah Hartenstein’s double-double (10 points, 13 rebounds).
For Gilgeous-Alexander, the game overall was reminiscent of the games we saw throughout the Thunder and Mavs’ best-of-7 playoff series in last year’s Western Conference semifinals.
“It had a little bit of a playoff feel. A little bit more at stake than just a regular-season game,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I’m proud of the team. I’m proud of the guys. We rose to the moment.”
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For Daigneault, Gilgeous-Alexander’s playing-making and scoring stood out most from SGA’s performance against the Mavericks.
“He played a great floor game. He had a great blend, great rhythm on his own stuff, his teammates,” Daigneault said. “He threw the ball to his teammates in advantageous positions on the floor.”
The Thunder will head to Las Vegas for the semifinals on Saturday.