The Thunder Obliterated The Pelicans To Take A 2-0 Series Lead

Game 1 of the series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the New Orleans Pelicans served as Oklahoma City’s return to postseason basketball. On Wednesday night, the Thunder used Game 2 of their first round series to do something else: Emphatically announce to any doubters that they have arrived, and while they’re young, they’re ready to compete for a championship right now.

Oklahoma City ran New Orleans out of the gym in Game 2. Thanks to the latest MVP-caliber effort by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a monster night from Chet Holmgren, the Thunder dominated on both ends of the floor en route to a 124-92 win.

Early on in the game, Oklahoma City made clear that they were not going to mess around. While the opening minutes were tight, the Thunder ended the first on a 17-6 run to take a 13-point lead. Most of the rest of the game was spent with New Orleans trailing by double-figures, as Oklahoma City mixed being scorching hot from the field with a level of defensive intensity that they’ve showed off throughout their ascendant 2023-24 campaign.

Gilgeous-Alexander was his usual brilliant self, as he had a career postseason high 33 points on an efficient 13-for-19 from the field with five assists, three rebounds, and two steals in 35 minutes. He was deputized in a big way by Holmgren, who had 26 points and seven boards while serving as a deterrent at the rim whenever the Pelicans wanted to attack.

No member of Oklahoma City’s starting five scored fewer than 13 points, and as a team, the Thunder shot 46-for-78 (59 percent) from the field and 14-for-29 (48.3 percent) from behind the three-point line. And after the game, a number of players came together as Gilgeous-Alexander gave a postgame interview to Allie LaForce of TNT, with Holmgren grabbing the mic and making clear that the league MVP resides in Oklahoma City.

As for the Pelicans, it was generally a night to forget. Jonas Valanciunas led the way with 19 points and seven rebounds, while Brandon Ingram and Herbert Jones both went for 18 points. The team only connected on seven of its 26 attempts from three.

Game 3 between these two teams will take place on Saturday afternoon in New Orleans, which will mark the first time that the series will move to the Smoothie King Center. The game is scheduled to tip off at 3:30 p.m. EST on TNT.