OKLAHOMA CITY — A lot of pregame pageantry was involved in this one. This marked Josh Giddey's first visit back to OKC since he was traded this past offseason. Fans cheered and his former teammates hugged. Turns out, that was the only interesting tidbit. Once the ball went up in the air, this became an otherwise standard blowout victory.
The Oklahoma City Thunder had a relaxed 145-117 win over the Chicago Bulls. The former led for the majority of the contest by double-digit points and by as many as 43 points.
After both teams struggled to score at the start, the Thunder offense got it going. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander slithered his way around the paint and Isaiah Joe didn't need long to heat up. Pair that with Giddey's struggles against Jalen Williams, OKC exited the first quarter with a 29-18 lead.
That multiplied in the second quarter. Highlighted by a dominant 20-5 run, the Thunder scored 49 points in the frame and entered halftime with a decisive 74-40 lead. Nearly doubling Chicago's points, this was the rare game where the outcome was decided by the break. Everybody would've been better off with a running clock in the second half.
The Thunder continued their dominance out of the break. They surpassed 40 points against and put this one away. Going with the hockey lineup change, all of the Thunder's starters checked out for the final time before the third quarter even ended. They held a 114-74 lead after three frames.
The Bulls' backups prettied up the final score in the fourth quarter with 43 points but that was pure optics. It was another fourth frame where Gilgeous-Alexander got to sit out and enjoy some extra rest.
The Thunder shot 53% from the field and went 23-of-43 (53.5%) from 3. They shot 18-of-23 on free throws. They had 39 assists on 52 baskets. Seven Thunder players scored double-digit points.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 27 points and 12 assists. Williams had an efficient 23 points. Joe scored 31 points off the bench as he was on fire from deep. Isaiah Hartenstein had 14 points and seven rebounds. Lu Dort had 11 points. Cason Wallace and Kenrich Williams each scored 10 points.
Meanwhile, the Bulls shot 45% from the field and went 16-of-51 (31.4%) from 3. They shot 13-of-16 on free throws. They had 29 assists on 44 baskets. Seven Bulls players scored double-digit points.
Giddey finished with 15 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds. Mata Buzelis had 14 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Patrick Williams scored 13 points. Nikola Vucevic had 11 points and eight rebounds. Jevon Carter scored 17 points and Talen Horton-Tucker scored 16 points off the bench.
The Bulls are the latest team who entered OKC with a red-hot streak and got quickly extinguished. Not that the reminder was needed, but the Thunder showed once again why they're in their own tier alone compared to the rest of the league.
As the regular season winds down, the Thunder collected another historic record like they're Thanos with Infinity Stones. This time, they surpassed the 2015-16
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