Inside The Thunder

Thunder Rock the Kings 120-100

Lou Dort gets his seventh straight start and takes advantage of it by scoring 23 and going 5 of 6 from three.
Erik Gee|
Thunder Rock the Kings 120-100
Thunder Rock the Kings 120-100

Lou Dort made his seventh start of the season on Wednesday, and that was bad news for the Sacramento Kings. Dort scored a career-high 23 points and went 5 of 6 from beyond the arc, helping the Thunder to a 120-100 win. 

Dort has been starting in place of Terrance Ferguson, who is out because of personal reasons. There is no timetable for Ferguson's return, and Billy Donovan is more than comfortable with Dort being in the starting five. Dort has no issue giving up some offense for defensive purposes, however, that confidence he's gaining on the defensive end is leading to more offensive output at least for one night. Since being injected into the starting lineup Dort has been up and down in the shooting department but, he's playing an average of 24.5 minutes per game. Ferguson, by comparison, has been playing 26. 

Dort is also showing his guts; with 6:02 go in the fouth, he went to the rim for a layup knowing he was going to be fouled by Nemanja Bjelica. He may not have known how hard the foul was going to be, and Dort ended up hitting his head on the floor. Bjelica was called for a flagrant one, and  Dort made both free throws. 

The Kings were the medicine the Thunder needed after having a five-game win streak snapped by the Mavericks on Monday.  Chris Paul returned after taking a night off for personal reasons. Paul played 26 minutes, scoring 9 points with 10 assists (as a team Oklahoma City had 32 assists). Danillo Gallinari had 19 on 7 of 13 shooting. 

Dennis Schroder was spectacular off the bench. Not only did Schroder go 24 and 9, but his defense on Buddy Hield was stifling. Hield scored just 13 after torching Oklahoma City for 23 in their last meeting. 

Thunder travel to Phoenix for an 8 pm tipoff on Friday. Catch the action on Fox Sports Oklahoma.   

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Erik Gee
ERIK GEE

With more than 20 years of experience hosting local and national radio shows, Erik Gee is a fixture of Oklahoma sports media. He has covered the Oklahoma City Thunder for the past six seasons. He is also the co-host of the Pat Jones show on 97.1 The Sports Animal in Tulsa. 

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