Inside The Thunder

3 Takeaways From OKC Thunder's Routing of Utah Jazz

The Oklahoma City Thunder made light work of the Utah Jazz in a blowout win Friday night.

Chase Gemes

Apr 11, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell (25) puts the ball up to the basket during the second quarter against the Utah Jazz at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images
Apr 11, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell (25) puts the ball up to the basket during the second quarter against the Utah Jazz at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images / Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images
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Friday night was a prime opportunity for the Oklahoma City Thunder to rest its starters.

With the playoffs nearly here and the No. 1 seed determined well in advance, the Thunder can coast until then. That being said, even its second unit can compete against some opponents, making up for the lost talent.

Without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and more, Oklahoma City picked up a 145-111 win over the Utah Jazz. Its offense was hot, finishing the game with a 24-of-53 clip from behind the arc that dismantled the Utah defense.

Just like the other two times the Thunder has rested its starters this season, Jaylin Williams recorded a triple-double — this time with 15 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

Here are three takeaways from the blowout win:

The Duo That Steps Up

When Oklahoma City's star players aren't available, two men typically rise to lead the offense: Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe.

That was on fully display last night, as they both led the Thunder in scoring with elite shooting performances. Wiggins dropped 35 points and seven rebounds on 14-of-24 shooting from the field, while Joe didn't come far behind with 32 points, five rebounds and nine assists on 10-of-14 shooting from 3-point range.

Wiggins has proved his capability to be more of a role player if needed throughout the season. Most often he is used as a 3&D role player off the bench, but he finds success as the go-to scoring option in these situations. This ability is part of why the forward is thought of as one of the most reliable pieces on the entire roster.

Joe's performance was impressive yet believable from behind the arc, but the nine assists were a huge stat for the guard to put up. He isn't viewed as a playmaker on the regular, but the proof of that ability is always nice to have in a playoff setting.

This type of scoring isn't going to be asked of either Wiggins or Joe in the coming months, but when Oklahoma City gets it, it's more than welcome.

A Crucial Return

The Thunder welcomed back rookie Ajay Mitchell last night, which was a return that it had been looking forward to for awhile.

Mitchell hadn't appeared in a game since Jan. 3, missing months of action from a turf toe injury. The guard came back with a solid performance against the Jazz, putting up nine points and five assists on 4-of-8 shooting from the field.

In the first half of the season, Mitchell was a constant rotation piece. He was likely to make the Rising Stars Challenge as a second round pick before the injury, and possibly an All-Rookie Team. While Oklahoma City has plenty of depth at its disposal, coach Mark Daigneault won't complain to have him back in a playoff setting.

It'll be interesting to see how many minutes Mitchell does end up getting, but he should absolutely play a part in the Thunder's playoff run. If someone goes cold, his ability to knock down shots efficiently and create plays will be an easy replacement to make.

Playoff Ready

Only one more game of the regular season remains for Oklahoma City against the New Orleans Pelicans at 2:30 p.m. Sunday on the road.

It will likely be a similar scenario as it was against Utah — the Thunder is looking to enter the playoffs with a healthy and fatigue-less roster. The players that sat out last night probably will again, because ultimately, a loss would not matter.

And as this specific game showed, getting a win with the reserves is likelier than one on the outside might think.

The pressure and expectations are on for Oklahoma City, but it has shown in recent matchups that it is ready to face those. Now is the time to reach its goal of an NBA Finals, it just has to get through the weekend first.

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Chase Gemes
CHASE GEMES

Chase is a junior at the University of Missouri studying journalism. He is a football and men’s basketball reporter for Missouri on SI.

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