Three Takeaways from the OKC Thunder’s Loss in LA

Oklahoma City was defeated by the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night one day after taking down the Phoenix Suns.

On Monday night, the Los Angeles Lakers topped the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-104 in LA. 

The contest marked OKC’s second game in two days after knocking off the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. 

The Thunder’s road trip continues on Wednesday as Mark Daigneault and company will have an opportunity to right the ship against the Portland Trail Blazers. 

Here are three takeaways from the Thunder’s loss to the Lakers. 

Los Angeles is a tough matchup for OKC

The Lakers became the first team to win its season series against Oklahoma City with Monday night’s victory, beating the Thunder three times in four attempts. 

In addition to a roster of experienced veterans, Los Angeles has positional size at every position that gives OKC trouble on the boards. 

On Monday night, the Lakers grabbed 17 more rebounds than the Thunder as LeBron James and Anthony Davis both recorded double-doubles. 

In addition to the aforementioned superstars, players like Jaxon Hayes, Rui Hachimura and even Austin Reaves provide good size at their positions that can give OKC trouble. 

Jarred Vanderbilt, who didn’t play on Monday, also adds size, defensive ability and strong rebounding skills that have hurt Sam Presti’s team all season.

Additionally, Davis has the perfect skill set to counter Chet Holmgren, as the skilled big man is agile enough to keep up with Holmgren when he drives and big enough to prevent the rookie center from finding success near the rim.

The Lakers’ size also makes it difficult for Oklahoma City to get into the paint and drive to the basket when their perimeter shots aren’t falling. 

Cason Wallace giving the Thunder good minutes off the bench

Despite the loss, rookie guard Cason Wallace had another solid performance. 

Even though the former Kentucky standout went 3-of-8 from the field, he finished with seven points, four rebounds, three steals and one assist.

In addition to his three steals, Wallace recorded multiple deflections and disrupted a handful of other plays. 

Logging 22 minutes against the Lakers, Wallace played the most of any non-starter.

61 games into his NBA career, Wallace is averaging 6.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists and just 0.4 turnovers per game. Additionally, Wallace is shooting 50.3% from the field and 41.3% from 3-point range. 

Wallace has also been one of the Thunder’s best defenders this year and is a key piece of the team’s second unit.

OKC looked tired against the Lakers

On the second night of a back-to-back, Oklahoma City got off to a hot start, taking a 13-2 lead early in the game.

After going on its impressive run, however, the Thunder struggled to get its offense in rhythm. 

OKC shot just 39.4% from the field on Monday night while Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander all shot below 50% from the field. 

Nine different players recorded at least four minutes in the loss, as the Thunder forced bad shots and struggled to play defense against a team with much more energy. 

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