OKLAHOMA CITY — Switching onto Isaiah Hartenstein, Luka Doncic was like a shark swimming in blood-infested water. Playing on OKC's City Edition alternate court again, the Los Angeles superstar might've had a change of supporting characters but repeated his dominance. Several step-back 3-pointers were the ultimate demoralizers as he toyed with the seven-footer.
The Oklahoma City Thunder dropped a 126-99 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. OKC trailed by as many as 29 points. The lopsided defeat has caused it to deal with just its second two-game losing streak of the season.
The result was known early on. Priding themselves on their league-best defense, the Lakers torched the Thunder with a 42-32 lead after the first quarter. That continued in the second frame as an 18-2 run ballooned its advantage past 20 points.
The Lakers entered halftime with a commanding 78-56 lead. The concept of a missed basket was foreign to them. They lit the basket with a 15-of-22 outside shooting performance in the first half alone. Doncic destroyed every Thunder defender thrown his way and Austin Reaves resembled prime Klay Thompson.
The second half was much of the same story. The Lakers controlled the entire game and led by double-digit points for most of the contest. The Thunder only scored 21 points in the third frame and exited with a 103-77 hole. They prettied the score in the fourth quarter with 22 points but that was pure optics.
The Thunder shot 43% from the field and went 12-of-37 (32.4%) from 3. They shot 9-of-12 on free throws. They had 20 assists on 39 baskets. Three Thunder players scored double-digit points.
Gilgeous-Alexander had 26 points but he had to earn them. Jalen Williams only had 16 points on 4-of-14 shooting. Chet Holmgren logged 10 points.
Meanwhile, the Lakers shot 55% from the field and went 22-of-40 (55%) from 3. They shot 12-of-17 on free throws. They had 25 assists on 46 baskets. Six Lakers players scored double-digit points.
Doncic led the way with 30 points, seven rebounds and six assists. LeBron James had 19 points and seven assists. Reaves scored 20 points on 7-of-15 shooting. Rui Hachimura finished with 11 points and seven rebounds. Dorian Finney-Smith had 14 points and Gabe Vincent had 12 points off the bench.
That's now two straight games where the Thunder have looked like they slept walk through the game. Both against viable playoff teams they'll likely need to face on their path to a hopeful NBA championship. There was a lot of anticipation for this game. This was the first time they saw the Lakers since they rebranded as a LeBron-Luka franchise. The results weren't pretty as the Lakers sent a message to the West's top seed.
Let's look at Thunder player grades:
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: A
