* **Chet came out smoking.** Seven straight makes to start. Thirteen of OKC’s first 15 points. He looked calm, confident, and surgical. If the Thunder gets a Chet like this all season, along with the reigning MVP and Jalen Williams, watch out.
* **Chet vs. Sengun was a heavyweight bout.** Sengun (39-11-7) was an absolute beast and fueled Houston all night. This felt like a future All-Star duel between two rising stars.
* **SGA is the MVP.** With only five points at halftime, SGA kept OKC in the game by dropping 30 after the break. Shai also hit several clutch baskets, including a game-tying jumpshot to send the game to OT and the game-winning free throws in the second OT.
* **The timeout that wasn’t.** With 2.2 seconds left in the first OT, Kevin Durant clearly motioned for a timeout (and even verbally called for one), and Houston didn’t have one. Officials missed it, claiming that no one saw the signal. C'mon man. It should've been a tech that likely would have given the Thunder the win in the first OT.
* **Refs under the microscope all night.** Fans roasted the crew for missing travel calls, ticky-tack fouls on Holmgren, and inconsistent whistles on drives. Houston thought Shai got “star calls.” OKC thought Chet got no respect. Chet ended up fouling out, Isaiah Hartenstein later did, and Kevin Durant was the last to get sent to the bench with 6 fouls. The whistles were rough.
* **Free throws nearly spoiled everything.** OKC went 20-for-25 but left points everywhere—SGA in particular had an uncharacteristically rough night at the line, going 10-14 including some late game FTs that fortunately didn't cost OKC the game. Daigneault mentioned postgame that “closing possessions includes the line.”
* **Ajay Mitchell might be a thing.** After a stellar rookie year cut short by injuries, the talk on Mitchell was whether he could be that bench ballhandler. After one game, the answer might be yes. Ajay went 6-12 with 16 points off the bench, and a four-point play that flipped momentum before halftime.
* **Cason is going to be a difference maker, again.** Wallace played 42 minutes, scored 14 points, including 3-8 from deep, and added 7 rebounds and 5 assists. Dude was a steady force, and hit an absolute massive three with 1:32 to go in the second OT.
* **Caruso’s rough debut.** 3-for-9 from the field, two turnovers, and a team-worst -15. I'm chalking it up to a wedding hangover.
* **Lead changes galore.** 22 lead changes, 12 ties. Biggest Houston lead: 12. Biggest OKC lead: 6. The kind of opener that reminds you the NBA’s marathon starts with a sprint. We deserved both overtimes (easier to say now since the Thunder won).
**1\. Chet looks ready for superstardom**
Cannot say enough about Holmgren. He was looking for his shot, and early, was all-out cooking. OKC seems primed to have 3 All-Stars.
**2\. The whistle nearly decided this game.**
Definitely some missed calls, but having Chet foul out in 1OT and Holmgren in 2OT, nearly flipped the game to Houston. OKC is a physical team, especially defensively, but if the Thunder's two star bigs are in foul trouble on a regular basis, defending the championship is going to be a whole lot more difficult.
**3\. Champions find a way.**
OKC didn’t play perfect. Far from it. They bricked threes, missed free throws, and nearly got burned by a no-call. But when it mattered, they stayed focused, made winning plays, and, you know, had the best player on the court. Seems familiar.