Last night, Dec. 17, the Oklahoma City Thunder took on the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Cup championship game. Before the game, the Thunder were projected as heavy favorites to win the title game due to their tournament path and overall record.
That could not have been further from the truth.
With a final score of 97-81, OKC played their worst game of the season on the national stage. Headed by the triple-double performance from Giannis Antetokounmpo, there were a multitude of reasons why the Bucks manhandled the Thunder.
Major reasons why OKC fell to Bucks in NBA Cup title game
1. Inability to make threes
The shooting performance by the OKC Thunder was absolutely abysmal. Exiting the first half, the Thunder only made one three pointer out of 17 total attempts. When the final buzzer sounded, they shot a horrendous 16% from beyond the arc (5/32).
In today’s NBA, with the three-point shot being such an influential part of the game, when a team is unable to knock down their threes, they are going to lose nine times out of ten. And with the Bucks shooting 43% from three in the title game (17/40), it is no wonder why the Thunder lost by early 20.
2. Fell short in the rebounding battle
For quite some time, the Thunder have always had trouble in the rebounding department. Last season during the playoffs, rebounding was the major reason they lost in the semifinals. For the NBA Cup championship game, that issue arose yet again.
Other than Isaiah Hartenstein who corralled 12 boards, OKC was getting dominated on the glass. Giving up 52 total rebounds and nine offensive boards, the Thunder gave the Bucks numerous second-chance opportunities and allowed them to maintain control of the game. Compared to Oklahoma City’s 43 total rebounds and seven offensive boards, OKC stood almost no chance in this matchup.
3. Stars dimmed under the bright lights
When OKC is able to win games, Shai Gilgeous Alexander and Jalen Williams typically have great performances. Unfortunately for this game, they were shells of their normal selves.
SGA ended the game with 21 points shooting 33% from the field (8/24) and 22% from three (2/9). For JDub, he finished with 18 points on 8/20 shooting from the field and 1/4 from beyond the arc.
Throughout the season, the two Thunder stars have been very consistent in their play and have shown they have the ability to get buckets against any opponent. When it came to Milwaukee, however, their championship experience proved to be too much for young stars and the rest of the OKC squad.
From numerous missed opportunities on both offense and defense to being unable to slow down Milwaukee’s momentum, if anything was proven in last night’s matchup, it is that OKC still has some growing to do and that they really need Chet Holmgren back for big-time games.
Now, OKC turns their focus back to regular season play as they head to Orlando tomorrow, Dec. 18, to take on the Magic.
MORE THUNDER CONTENT:
Five OKC Thunder players place in the Ringer’s top 100 players in the NBA
OKC Thunder place first in week nine of NBA power rankings
NBA executives voted OKC Thunder as top front office in the entire association
