The Oklahoma City Thunder capped off their preseason with the most exciting installment of the six-game campaign.
In a back-and-forth contest that took all four quarters to put away, the Thunder were able to defeat the San Antonio Spurs, 118-112 and finish preseason with a 5-1 record.
This was a well-balanced attack from the offense as seven of the 12 players who touched the floor scored at least eight points. The Thunder shot 40-of-86 (46.5 percent) from the field.
For the Spurs, Josh Primo scored 23 points, Keldon Johnson scored 19 points and Devin Vessell scored 18 points.
Let’s take a look at player grades from this fun win as the team prepares to play games of consequence soon.
Jalen Williams: A+
Jalen Williams was the star of the night — and especially in the fourth quarter.
Williams led the Thunder with 21 points on efficient 7-of-8 shooting and went 6-of-7 from the free-throw line. 12 of those points came in the fourth quarter as Williams served as the closer for the Thunder down the stretch.
soft touch and control for the lay in ⚡️@JdubPSCEO | #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/GpsnD1uWO5
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) October 14, 2022
J Dub making it look easy with these back-to-back scoring sequences @OGandE Power Play of the Game pic.twitter.com/2QoYjkhKWe
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) October 14, 2022
make the read, make the play 😤@JdubPSCEO | @ThisIsJRE pic.twitter.com/q7GG8wbkER
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) October 14, 2022
Josh Giddey: A+
Everything that could be said about Josh Giddey’s preseason has already been said multiple times. Giddey continues to be the best player on the court for the Thunder as he wrapped up his preseason with 18 points, six assists and six rebounds.
The story of the night once again came from the perimeter, as Giddey shot 2-of-3 from three.
While it’s still preseason and a small sample size, Giddey had about as good of a shooting preseason as one could’ve hoped for. Now it’s about carrying that over to the regular season.
oh wow
Josh Giddey with the step-back middy. pic.twitter.com/GV0C5uX37v
— Thunder Film Room (@ThunderFilmRoom) October 14, 2022
Josh Giddey strength advantage creation 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/nvI1vxu9SI
— Thunder Film Room (@ThunderFilmRoom) October 14, 2022
Josh Giddey inbound passes are must watch pic.twitter.com/LBpwbqsmNF
— Thunder Film Room (@ThunderFilmRoom) October 14, 2022
Tre Mann: A
Over the last two seasons, the Thunder lacked self-creating scoring guards. Outside of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort, the Thunder were not able to generate any offense based off one player.
That might change this season.
Tre Mann concluded an impressive preseason with 17 points and six assists against the Spurs. This included going 4-of-8 from three.
The Thunder come away from their preseason with Mann being one of the more impressive players during the six games.
Too smooth with the step back 😌@tre2mann3 | #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/hJve8TwL7n
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) October 14, 2022
Ousmane Dieng: B+
Ousmane Dieng might not spend as much time in the G League as previously thought.
Dieng showed long stretches of brilliance with the ball in his hands consistently during the preseason and that was capped off with 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting against the Spurs.
Right now, it’s all butterflies and sunshine in Oklahoma City and Dieng handling the ball like a guard for a guy his size is one of the main reasons why it’s raining optimism.
Ousmane Dieng attacks the close out & gets the tough finish over Poeltl.
This kid man pic.twitter.com/HHBzghLc24
— Thunder Film Room (@ThunderFilmRoom) October 14, 2022
Ousmane Dieng one legged fader…
He continues to shine during preseason pic.twitter.com/lnerIOYTji
— Thunder Film Room (@ThunderFilmRoom) October 14, 2022
Lu Dort: B+
Despite playing just 13 minutes, Lu Dort left his mark in this game with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting. While the three-point shot wasn’t there tonight as he went 0-for-4, Dort continued to stay aggressive and that led to a 4-of-6 night from the charity stripe.
Dort did not start the second half as he spent the final minutes of the first half treating his knee on the bench. The Thunder ruled Dort out the rest of the game with a left quad contusion.
