Handing out Game Balls from Thunder's loss to Kings
The Thunder fell to the Kings 103-99 on Tuesday night, in what was a game that came down to the wire. With that in mind, there were quite a few positive performances from individual players and things the team showed real improvement on. OKC shot better than Sacramento from beyond the arc, they got to the line more frequently, made more free throws and also dominated the glass all night.
What was most impressive was their low number of turnovers, at just nine total in the game. This had been a huge issue of late that they were able to clean up, although still falling short.
Buddy Hield had a solid night for the Kings, notching 18 points on five made threes. Terence Davis hit quite a few big shots throughout the game and finished with 18 points of his own. It was a balanced scoring attach for Sacramento in their win, with seven different players notching double-digit points.
For the Thunder, Moses Brown pulled down boards all night against the worst rebounding team in the NBA, finishing with 17 rebounds to go along with six points. Additionally, Ty Jerome continued to show why he will be a key piece for Oklahoma City moving forward with his 3-point shooting and passing. He finished with eight points (2-for-4 from deep) and four assists.
Game Ball: Darius Bazley
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Darius Bazley couldn't be stopped on Tuesday night against the Kings. He finished with a team-high 24 points on 7-for-18 shooting. This included three makes from beyond the arc and nine free throw attempts, converting on seven of those.
As his offensive game develops, Bazley is starting to click both near the rim and drawing fouls as well as with his deep ball. Defensively, he continued to show his versatility and also pulled down 11 rebounds.
Game Ball: Gabriel Deck
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Although he's only played in four NBA games, Gabriel Deck has only gotten better with each one. On Tuesday night, he finished with a new career-high 16 points and produced three rebounds and three assists. With a variety of offensive moves, Deck is a crafty scorer with real vision.
Standing at 6-foot-8, Deck is versatile on both ends of the floor. While he is quickly adapting to the speed and style of the NBA game, the 26-year-old is already finding his groove with the Thunder.
