Inside The Thunder

Three Takeaways from the OKC Thunder's Comeback Win Over Sacramento

In Oklahoma City's first game back at the Paycom Center after a lengthy road trip, the team secured their second consecutive win following a three-game losing streak.

Randall Sweet

Apr 9, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2)
Apr 9, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) / Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports
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On Tuesday night, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams returned to the court for the Oklahoma City Thunder, helping lead the team to a 112-105 victory over the Sacramento Kings.

After losing three consecutive games on the road as Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams were sidelined with injuries, OKC was able to muster a three-point victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday before returning to full strength and taking down the Kings two days later.

The victory gives the Thunder a 54-25 record this season, putting Oklahoma City one game behind Minnesota and Denver in the Western Conference standings. OKC is also three games ahead of the Los Angeles Clippers and five games ahead of Dallas with three contests remaining for each squad in the regular season.

Here are three takeaways from the Thunder's home victory over Sacramento.

SGA dazzles in return to the court

Oklahoma City's MVP candidate has missed six of the team's last seven contests with a quad injury, sitting in an effort to get back to full health ahead of the NBA Playoffs.

After being noticeably limited in his last outing against the New York Knicks, Gilgeous-Alexander looked fully healthy on Tuesday night, erupting for 40 points, seven rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals in 38 minutes of action.

SGA's sixth 40-point performance of the season included what proved to be the dagger, as the standout guard leaned away from his defender and hit an impressive mid-range shot with less than a minute and a half left in the fourth quarter.

Gilgeous-Alexander's clutch basket gave the Thunder a three-point lead, which the Kings were unable to recover from.

In addition to going 2-for-3 from 3-point range, the All-NBA guard did a good job of getting to the free throw line, shooting 20 shots from the charity stripe against Sacramento.

Thunder defense shuts down the Kings

Despite jumping out to a double-digit lead in the first half, the Kings struggled from the field all night.

Sacramento shot 34.4% from the field and 34.5% from beyond the arc, stuggling mightily to find a consistent rhythm on offense in the second half. With the exception of Keon Ellis, who knocked down a remarkable eight 3-point shots, every Kings player shot well below 50% from the field against OKC on Tuesday night.

Former Thunder big man Domantas Sabonis had a particularly rough night, going 2-of-8 from the field and finishing the game with just eight points. Prior to Tuesday evening's matchup, Sabonis had recorded 61 consecutive double-doubles, but that streak came to an end against the Thunder.

On the season, Sabonis is averaging 19.5 points, 13.8 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game while shooting 59.5% from the field.

Oklahoma City tallied 11 steals and eight blocks in the win as the Kings turned the ball over 17 times, including five turnovers from standout guard De'Aaron Fox.

J-Dub looks rusty in first game back

After missing four consecutive contests with an injury, Williams had a decent performance in his return to action, but have the same impact he usually provides.

In 36 minutes on the floor, Williams went 5-of-11 from the field, finishing with 11 points, six rebounds, four assists and one steal. The second-year wing didn't take a single free throw attempt and only took two shots from deep.

William's point total was well below his season average of 19.5 points per game, but the Santa Clara product didn't need to have his usual outing as Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Lu Dort picked up the slack.

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Randall Sweet

RANDALL SWEET

Randall Sweet is a 2022 Oklahoma University graduate who has formerly written for the Norman Transcript and OU Daily. Randall also serves as the Communications Coordinator at Visit OKC.