The Oklahoma City Thunder don’t have much time to sit with Tuesday night’s loss. They’re right back in the Moda Center on Wednesday, facing the Portland Trail Blazers again in the second game of the same venue, same opponent, back-to-back set. After getting blown out in the second half and losing by 20, OKC is trying to leave Portland with a split to open its four-game season-long road trip.
There are a few places this game can swing, but the biggest question is whether the Thunder can survive with double-big lineups again. On paper, packing the paint to slow Deni Avdija and cut off Portland’s work inside the arc makes sense.
In reality, it comes with tradeoffs. That approach can leave the corners exposed, and Oklahoma City may not even have the personnel to lean on it heavily.
The injury report for Wednesday won’t arrive until later in the afternoon, but Tuesday night the Thunder had only two healthy centers: Isaiah Hartenstein and Aday Mara.
That matters because Portland’s size is still a problem, and it makes small-ball options harder to trust. If Mara and Hartenstein are on the floor together for stretches, the Thunder are asking a lot of that alignment to hold up.
They already tried the double-big look in the third quarter on Tuesday, and it didn’t do much to slow a Portland team that won the period by 17 points on its way to the blowout. A healthy Jaylin Williams would at least give Oklahoma City another option, especially if Portland rests Robert Williams III, but for now that remains up in the air.
The other obvious hinge point is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He wasn’t bad by normal standards in Tuesday’s game, but this isn’t normal territory for him.
For a player with back-to-back NBA MVPs, and for a short-handed team that needs him to carry more of the load against quality opponents, it wasn’t enough. Oklahoma City can absorb an off night from its star now and then, but this wasn’t the kind of game where that luxury exists.
If the Thunder are going to steal Wednesday’s matchup, Gilgeous-Alexander has to take control. The supporting cast can help, but this is the kind of night where OKC needs its best player to bend the game its way. The schedule does soften after this, with the lowly Clippers and Kings coming over the weekend, but Portland is the assignment right now.
And the offense has to be cleaner than it was Tuesday. Oklahoma City shot 44% from the floor, 36% from three, and 77% at the line, but those numbers didn’t tell the full story.
The Thunder struggled to create quality looks after halftime, whether they were hunting threes or trying to score inside the arc. Against a long, physical Portland defense, that kind of second-half stagnation isn’t going to get it done, especially on the second night of a back-to-back.
If OKC wants the split, it has to find a way to generate better offense after intermission and make Portland work harder than it did the night before.
In Other News...
Blazers Lose Another Depth Piece As Injury Concerns Keep Growing
Another depth piece is suddenly off the board for Portland, with forward Vit Krejci undergoing surgery on a fracture in his left ankle after getting hurt in a game against the Suns. The recovery process begins immediately, and the Blazers now have another rotation question to manage as they try to keep their season moving without one more capable body on the wing.
Krejcis absence matters because Portland has already been leaning on depth to survive the grind, and his contract situation only adds another layer to the decision-making around the roster. Hell be re-evaluated in eight weeks, leaving the Blazers to navigate the coming stretch without knowing exactly when they can count on him again. [Read more 🡒]
Scoot Hendersons New Role Puts His Blazers Future In Doubt
Scoot Hendersons season has taken a sharp turn in Portland, and the latest move only deepened the uncertainty around his place in the rotation. After the Trail Blazers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, the team turned to Sidy Cissoko ahead of Henderson, a notable shift for a player who entered the year expected to keep building within the clubs young core. Instead, Henderson has seen his starting spot slip away while his numbers have sagged to career lows in shooting efficiency.
For a franchise still sorting out its long-term backcourt, the timing matters. Henderson is on an expiring deal and will be a restricted free agent, which gives Portland a decision to make soon about whether to keep investing in his development or explore a different path. If the Blazers continue to view him as a player without a settled role, a trade to a rebuilding team could make more sense for both sides, even if it would mark a significant pivot from the plan that once seemed set in Portland. [Read more 🡒]
Damian Lillard Is Changing How This Blazers Team Looks Again
Damian Lillards return has already shifted the feel of Portlands roster, bringing back a familiar focal point after a difficult stretch in Milwaukee. The Bucks dealt for him with the idea of pairing him with Giannis Antetokounmpo, but the fit never fully settled as injuries and chemistry issues kept the partnership from taking off the way anyone hoped.
Now back in a multi-year deal with the Trail Blazers, Lillard is again a central part of the offense and a major reason the team looks different than it did a year ago. For Portland, the bigger question is how much his presence can reshape the rest of the rotation around him, especially as the Blazers try to build something more stable around a player they know well. [Read more 🡒]