OKC Thunder's Win at Nets Shows Why 3-Point Variance Isn't a Concern

The Thunder got a win in Brooklyn after weathering the Nets' outside shooting barrage.

Feb 26, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Cason Wallace (22) spots up for a three point shot in the second quarter against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City’s shooting disparity has been a hot topic throughout the season, but it shouldn’t be a major concern for the Thunder.

On Wednesday, the Thunder bounced back from their rough loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves to get a win in Brooklyn. The win over the Nets began a three-game road trip for the Thunder and showed a valuable lesson.

Much of the discussion after the Thunder’s win was about its struggles to find consistent success with the double-big lineup of Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. Mark Daigneault explained the reasoning behind the pairing as needing to get more reps in for when things will matter most in the postseason.

Over the course of the Thunder’s win, the double-big lineup wasn’t the only example of something the Thunder need to be ready for in the playoffs. At halftime, Brooklyn held a 76-61 lead and knocked down 15 3-pointers in the first two quarters.

That 15-of-30 mark from beyond the arc helped the Nets build a lead early in the first quarter and continue their success into halftime. While the Nets were able to generate open looks against a lacking Thunder defense, their blistering hot start wasn’t enough to truly pull away.

The Thunder flipped the script in the second half and began forcing the Nets into tougher shots and finally got some misses. Brooklyn shot only 8-of-31 from deep in the second half, compared to the Thunder’s 9-of-30 mark for the entire game.

Brooklyn finished with 61 3-point attempts to Oklahoma City’s 30, which could be reason for concern but the Thunder can make up for that disparity in other places and has typically been good about closing the gap in the outside shooting department this season.

The Thunder average 38.8 shots from 3-point range per game, good for ninth in the league. While the Celtics are in a league of their own at 48.2 attempts, the Thunder trail the second-ranked Bulls by only 4.4 attempts.

The Thunder also ran into shooting issues in their loss to Minnesota, missing 13 of their 15 fourth-quarter 3-point attempts. However, the most important part to remember in all of this is that opponents will need to capitalize on that advantage four times in seven tries for it to be deadly for the Thunder. 

Considering the Thunder’s physicality and defensive prowess, plus their improved ability to knock down threes since the start of 2025, Oklahoma City shouldn’t run into many drastic shooting problems when the postseason comes around.

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