Mark Daigneault had plenty to like about Oklahoma City’s start to the season, but the biggest takeaway from Tuesday night was simple: the Thunder made Victor Wembanyama work for everything.
In a 116-104 road win over San Antonio, Oklahoma City kept the Spurs star to one field goal on the night. Wembanyama finished with 12 points on 1-for-13 shooting, missed all four of his three-point tries, and still managed 13 rebounds and six blocks. Even with those numbers, the Thunder controlled the game for long stretches and protected a 21-point halftime cushion before closing out the 12-point victory.
After the game, Thunder sideline reporter Nick Gallo shared Daigneault’s comments on X, formerly Twitter. The coach pointed to the team’s total buy-in on both ends, especially the way Oklahoma City handled the game when San Antonio made its push.
“We were really, really good on that end tonight, and intentional on offense… Everybody was ready to play. Everybody contributed.
It was a great collective effort for 48 minutes. We weathered the storm well and recentered when appropriate.”
That defensive edge showed up early. San Antonio shot just 14-for-48 (29.2%) in the first half, and Wembanyama didn’t make a shot before halftime, missing all seven of his attempts. Oklahoma City got out to a 26-point lead at one point and went into the break up 65-44.
The Spurs did come back with a stronger second half, but the Thunder had enough to absorb the run and finish the job.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led Oklahoma City with 32 points, and Jared McCain added 20 while hitting six of his eight shots from beyond the arc. Those offensive performances matched Daigneault’s praise for how his team handled the ball and kept pressure on San Antonio.
Tuesday’s opener also brought an immediate rematch of last season’s Western Conference finals. San Antonio had ended Oklahoma City’s season in seven games, finishing it with a 111-103 win in Game 7 on May 30. This time, the Thunder got the result they wanted, even if Daigneault stopped short of naming a primary defender or explaining the exact coverage used on Wembanyama.
What he did make clear was that the answer was collective. Oklahoma City’s group effort was enough to survive the comeback and leave San Antonio with a season-opening win over the same team that had sent it home less than five months ago.
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