OKC Thunder Handed Crushing Loss Against Phoenix Suns, Remains Winless in Las Vegas

In what looked to be a confident win for the first three quarters, a fourth quarter collapse caused the Oklahoma City Thunder to drop its third straight game in Summer League.

Apr 14, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Buddy Boeheim (35) warms up for a game against the San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports / Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports

It looked like the Oklahoma City Thunder's unlucky stretch in Las Vegas would come to an end tonight, but it proved to be the exact opposite.

The Thunder fell to the Phoenix Suns in a thrilling 100-99 finish, coming down to the absolute final seconds. The game looked to be in its favor in the first half with a 55-47 lead, but the Suns worked their way back to just slip away with a one-point victory after a back-and-forth stretch late in the fourth quarter.

The story of the first half was Buddy Boeheim. The forward scored 14 points in the half alone, including four 3-pointers. He was the main source of energy behind Oklahoma City's offense, helping it secure an eight-point lead going into halftime.

Phoenix wasn't going to be put down easy, however, using a score-by-committee approach that kept the contest close for much of the second half. The Thunder still kept a seven-point lead after three quarters, but the fourth quarter started to put some doubt in its mind.

The Suns went on a 16-3 run from that third quarter deficit within five minutes of action, primarily thanks to Isaiah Wong and David Roddy. All the momentum was heading in their favor, but a crucial 3-pointer Boeheim got Oklahoma City back on track.

The final three minutes of the contest got dicey, each team desperately trying to pull away to gain their first win in Vegas. Jaden Shackelford gave the Thunder a 97-94 lead with 25 seconds remaining, but the seeming nail in the coffin was one-upped by a 3-pointer from Roddy, leaving just 11 seconds on the clock for Oklahoma City to make something happen.

The Thunder trusted in Keyonate Johnson with the game on the line, and he delivered. The forward drove inside the paint and knocked down a short fadeaway jumper that only gave Phoenix two seconds of opportunity left. However, Roddy once again caused problems.

The guard drew a foul behind the arc, and capitalized by making all three of his free throws to give Phoenix the edge. What could've been a win, quickly turned into a crushing blow for Oklahoma City.

Still, the Thunder had strong performances all around. Aside from Boeheim's 20-point game, Johnson proved 16 points and seven rebounds along with 18 points from Shackelford. Hunter Maldonado also looked great as the lead point guard, putting up 13 points, 10 assists and two steals on an efficient 4-of-8 night.

Oklahoma City will attempt to break the losing streak on Friday against the Golden State Warriors at 9:30 p.m. CDT.

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