Three Takeaways From the OKC Thunder’s Frustrating Game 2 Loss to Dallas

The Mavericks stole home court from the Thunder as the series shifts to Texas.

May 9, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jaylin Williams (6) shoots / Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports

Oklahoma City had runs, but Dallas always had answers.

The Thunder lost 119-110 to the Mavericks in Game 2 of the teams’ second-round series. Thanks to a bounce-back performance from Luka Doncic, the series shifts to Dallas tied 1-1.

Doncic finished with 29 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists while shooting 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. After shooting 5-of-35 from deep over his past four games, he delivered with a much-needed outburst.

With another subpar performance from Kyrie Irving, P.J. Washington poured in 29 points and 11 rebounds, including seven 3-pointers.

Meanwhile, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 33 points, but with only two other Thunder players in double figures, it was not enough to get a win.

Let’s dive into three lessons that can be learned from yesterday’s game.

May 9, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Tim Hardaway Jr. (10) is / Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports

This might not be a Josh Giddey series

It took roughly four minutes before Thunder coach Mark Daigneault opted to pull Giddey off the floor. His rough start never improved, as he finished with eight points and two rebounds.

The Thunder were outscored by 20 points in Giddey’s 11 minutes on Thursday, making him a -27 for the series. His weaknesses on defense and beyond the arc play directly into the Mavericks’ game plan, which led to Aaron Wiggins starting the second half in place of Giddey.

Although Giddey has had a rough season, he seemingly turned things around near the end of the regular season and had a solid series in the first round. However, the Mavericks present an unfavorable matchup for him, which could severely limit his minutes moving forward.

The Mavericks’ shooting is sustainable enough

The Mavericks finished Game 2 shooting 18-of-37 from beyond the arc. The Mavericks were a middle-of-the-pack team from 3-point range this season, but they shot more from that range than all but one team.

Dallas might not have an abundance of elite shooters, but it has plenty of high-volume shooters. Dallas made at least 18 3-pointers in 16 games in the regular season.

Although the Mavericks can’t consistently do that over an 82-game season, they don’t need to. Three more outlier shooting nights in the next five games could be enough to get them to the conference finals.

Oklahoma City will live with a lot of Dallas’ attempts from deep, but Dallas is willing to live with them, too. 

The battle of the benches could determine the series

The Thunder’s bench outscored the Mavericks’ 42-23 in Game 1. However, Tim Hardaway Jr.’s 17 helped the Mavericks flip that script and even the bench battle 30-30 in Game 2.

Considering how much Oklahoma City relies on its bench, Dallas probably won’t run away with the bench points. However, keeping Oklahoma City from dominating that category could be all Dallas needs.

Perhaps it’s more of a battle of support players, considering Washington’s big night. Still, whoever wins the bench scoring could have the upper hand throughout the series.

The Thunder’s problems from Game 2 are all fixable but are issues nonetheless. Making the proper adjustments going into Game 3 will be a priority, but ensuring those adjustments don’t affect what has worked for the Thunder through two games is imperative.

The series continues in Dallas, with Game 3 set to tip off Saturday afternoon at 2:30.

---

Want to join the discussion? Like Inside the Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.