3-Point Shooting Explodes as Thunder Blown Out by Jazz

Oklahoma City got back in the losing column on Wednesday to remain in position for the fourth best lottery odds.

In a game in Utah against the Jazz, the Thunder were outmatched from the tip, and the Jazz proved too powerful for the injury plagued Thunder with a 137-101 win.

Here are the top performers from the game.

Jeremiah Robinson-Earl

His slow return from injury continues, and took another step forward Wednesday. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, who had been the starting center for OKC prior to his injury, has been easing back into more minutes since being cleared.

Robinson-Earl was able to check into the game for 16 minutes, and in that time span he was dominant for the Thunder. He scored 18 points in that span on 6-of-10 shooting and was able to knock down two of his three shots from beyond the arc.

Robinson-Earl recorded just two rebounds in the game, but those were not easy to come by for any OKC player. While returning from injury the rookie has looked closer to his pre-injury state with each game.

Since returning on March 28 against the Blazers he’s averaged over 10 points per game and is 8-of-15 from 3-point range. While the season is coming to a close, Robinson-Earl is getting crucial rehab minutes.

Jaylen Hoard

Few players have had the beginning of an NBA career that Jaylen Hoard has had in his short stint with OKC.

On Tuesday against Portland, Hoard posted a 24 point and 21 rebound game that came two games after he posted 11 points and 20 rebounds against the Pistons.

Wednesday was his fifth game with OKC and his second straight game with 20 or more points. While OKC has been near the bottom of the league in 3-point percentage, but despite losing by 36 the Thunder shot 43.2% from 3-point range while making 16 from beyond the arc.

Hoard played a vital role in those tallies. He shot 5-of-8 from 3-point range and 8-of-17 overall while scoring 23 points. Hoard also grabbed five rebounds while OKC was out-rebounded overall.

In his five games he has played 30 or more minutes in three of those games including the previous two games.

Isaiah Roby

With the onslaught of injuries and the constant roster movement Isaiah Roby has been thrust into a leadership role and the mainstay of the starting lineup.

While the position was not anticipated for the majority of the season, Roby has embraced the new role and made the most of it.

Wednesday night in Utah his success continued. He scored 18 points while playing 26 minutes for the Thunder. Roby shot 60% making six of his 10 field goal attempts. Roby, like Hoard, was explosive from 3-point range knocking down 4-of-6 attempts from beyond the arc.

Roby, who has begun to handle the ball beyond the arc facilitating some of the Thunder’s offensive sets also added five assists to his statline for the night. While overall the Jazz were dominant on the glass Roby did grab five rebounds on his night.

In his last 10 games, Roby has averaged 15.1 points per game, in April Roby is also averaging 15 points but also nearly eight rebounds.

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