Player grades: 22-0 run helps Thunder get 131-113 win over Bulls

· Yahoo Sports

OKLAHOMA CITY — Receiving the catch-and-shoot look, Jaylin Williams knocked down the outside jumper that finally put OKC ahead. After forcing another miss, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander threw a bounce pass to Alex Caruso for the difficult and-one layup. Finally, no more see-sawing with Chicago.

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The Oklahoma City Thunder pulled away late in their 131-113 win over the Chicago Bulls. A 22-0 second-half run flipped this from a potential upset alert to another ho-hum double-digit victory.

Even though the Thunder led by as many as 24 points, it was quite the journey to get there. Likely expecting a cakewalk, the Bulls caught fire from deep to at least make things interesting. After the first quarter, OKC was in a surprising 32-29 deficit. Uh oh.

Even with a bunch of independent contractors hoping for a new gig, the Bulls played within an offensive flow. They looked like a team that dropped 53 points in the final dozen minutes of garbage time in their recent loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Leonard Miller had a couple of layups and made an outside jumper. Suddenly, the Thunder couldn't stop a bunch of guys fighting for their NBA careers. More importantly, Gilgeous-Alexander lost his efficiency magic. He couldn't buy an outside bucket. Even his mid-range shot was off.

The Thunder scored 33 points in the second quarter but entered halftime in a 67-62 deficit. Not exactly what you want to see from a bottom-half team that has its hands hovering over the reset button for this upcoming offseason. Still, got a half to clean up a mess and avoid catastrophe.

Exchanging buckets with the Bulls, the Thunder finally played their league-best defense. They finished the third quarter with a 15-0 run. Finally, some momentum. Putting up 33 points in the frame, they held a 95-88 lead. Things continued to go their way. Eventually, OKC scored 22 consecutive points at one point — flirting with the Dallas Mavericks' 30-0 run from a couple of years ago.

At one point, the Thunder were in an 88-80 deficit with four minutes to go in the third frame. By the time the Bulls scored again, OKC flipped the scoreboard to 102-88 with a little under 10 minutes left in the fourth frame. Over six minutes of shutdown defense that saw Chicago go scoreless.

By then, OKC's second-unit lineup put this away. Jalen Williams finished through traffic for the transition layup. He flexed his muscles and pumped up the Thunder crowd. They scored 36 points in the final frame. They led by over 20 points for most of it as Gilgeous-Alexander enjoyed an impromptu rested fourth quarter.

The Thunder shot 47% from the field and went 14-of-45 (31.1%) from 3. They shot 23-of-31 on free throws. They had 29 assists on 47 baskets. Six Thunder players scored double-digit points.

Gilgeous-Alexander muscled his way through 25 points and five assists. Williams had 18 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Cason Wallace finished with 21 points and five rebounds. Jaylin Williams tallied 12 points and 10 rebounds. Ajay Mitchell and Isaiah Joe each scored 15 points apiece.

Meanwhile, the Bulls shot 42% from the field and went 15-of-47 (31.9%) from 3. They shot 16-of-21 on free throws. They had 25 assists on 41 baskets. Five Bulls players scored double-digit points.

Matas Buzelis had 15 points and nine rebounds. Collin Sexton dropped 22 points and three assists. Tre Jones had 21 points and nine assists. Isaac Okoro put up 20 points and four rebounds. Miller popped off for 15 points and seven rebounds.

Well, it was ugly, but the Thunder got one of their last two gimme wins left. Never really felt like they were on the verge of disaster, but you can't let the thought creep into your head. To OKC's credit, it salvaged the game as it turned in a strong second half after a poor first half. The final score might suggest this was a blowout, but it was quite the adventure to get there.

Not to be a glass-half-empty guy, but the Thunder can't afford to play with their food like this. The Bulls' incompetence bailed them out as their outside shooting luck eventually ran out. Gilgeous-Alexander has to be better from the jump than this. With a slim margin for error, he'll get more chances to do that.

Let's look at Thunder player grades:

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: C-plus

Calling off a screen, Gilgeous-Alexander took on Okoro one-on-one. As the final seconds ticked away, the reigning MVP put the final touches on this one. He crossed over the Chicago defender before several more collapsed in the paint. Pumping the brakes, he went up for the layup.

Gilgeouas-Alexander finished with 25 points on 8-of-24 shooting, five assists and two rebounds. He shot 0-of-10 from 3 and went 9-of-12 on free throws. He also had three blocks.

Well, that's one way to make up for an all-time bad game. For the first time, Gilgeous-Alexander was unrecognizable. He couldn't buy a bucket. You've never seen the habitual 30-point scorer go through that long a dry spell. You also never see him be overly dependent on the outside jumper.

That's what happened in the first half. Gilgeous-Alexander completely abandoned his efficiency-friendly shot diet. Instead, he went with jumper junk food. He missed five outside attempts in the first quarter alone. Most nights, he doesn't even reach that number. At the break, he was stuck with 11 points on 5-of-14 from the field. Just something you never see.

Things only got bleak from there. His missed outside attempt streak reached double-digits. Finally, Gilgeous-Alexander returned to his bread and butter. Playing with fire, he attacked the basket. It resulted in a busy night at the free-throw line. Eventually, he turned in 25 points on 24 shot attempts.

Not the type of superb efficiency we're used to with Gilgeous-Alexander, but decent looking at league-wide trends with some of the other top scorers. His third-quarter takeover allowed him to rest the final frame. Nobody thought that was a possibility for most of the game.

Well, not really the best game for Gilgeous-Alexander's Hall-of-Fame standards. But he still put up scoring numbers against the Bulls. He also locked in when things mattered most. If this were on the lower tier of his games this season, you easily take it.

Jalen Williams: B-plus

Bringing the ball up, Williams eyed Rob Dillingham all the way. He took the Chicago player to the cup as he finished through traffic for the transition layup. Flexing his muscles and yelling at the OKC crowd, the 24-year-old's blue-collar bucket was the last of their 22-0 run.

Williams finished with 18 points on 8-of-16 shooting, eight assists and six rebounds. He shot 0-of-2 from 3 and went 2-of-4 on free throws. He also had one steal.

Going full speed at the rim, Williams double-dog dares his hamstring to flare up again. The 24-year-old is fighting through a mental block that he can accelerate without risk of blowing another tire. Think that was a step in the right direction to get over that hurdle. He was a wrecking ball that destroyed Chicago's nonexistent defense.

The jumper still needs to be found, but Williams' relentless attacks opened things up. For the first time in a while, Gilgeous-Alexander had another go-to scorer. An element the Thunder have missed as he's been sidelined for most of the season. He led the second unit to blow this open in the fourth quarter. It was some of his best basketball yet.

The Bulls were always a cupcake, but still good to see Williams take advantage. The one-time All-NBA talent needs to quickly ramp up. Only three weeks remain until the NBA playoffs arrive. Against the Bulls, he gained some much-needed confidence as he was one of OKC's best players in this win.

Cason Wallace: A-plus

Picking up Dillingham at the perimeter, Wallace baited him into a highlight play. He allowed the Chicago role player to get to the rim before he viciously swatted away the attempt as he sprang off the floor. That about summed up how the second half went.

Wallace finished with 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting, five rebounds and two assists. He shot 5-of-7 from 3. He also had three steals and one block.

In an inverse of their recent loss, Wallace bought Gilgeous-Alexander time from his ice-cold struggles. He knocked down a top-of-the-key outside jumper in their opening possession. That was enough to view the rim as wide as a hula hoop. After a recent cold spell, he enjoyed some overdue hot shooting.

As the Bulls blitzed the Thunder from the outside, Wallace helped them survive the tidal wave. A handful of driving layups also showed off some of his rim finishing. Something he seldom gets to do in his current role. Against the Bulls, though, all bets are off.

On the other side, Wallace remained a one-man defensive machine. He wrecked some of Chicago's passing lanes. He had no problem sizing up or down across their lineups. Limiting the Bull to a pedestrian 46 points in the second half, the perimeter defense was stout.

Awesome game for Wallace. Been a while since he had a scoring explosion like this. The Thunder badly needed it to keep it within striking distance as Gilgeous-Alexander shook off a cold start. Several OKC role players made up for the no-show they had in Boston.

Isaiah Hartenstein: B

Camping down low, Hartenstein became best friends with the basketball. When it didn't go through the rim, the seven-footer outmuscled Chicago's small frontcourt for boards. Even with some limitations, the 27-year-old has carved out ways to help.

Hartenstein finished with six points on 2-of-5 shooting, 16 rebounds and three assists. He shot 2-of-3 on free throws. He also had two steals.

I've said it before, but Hartenstein and rebounds are the second-strongest stat-to-player correlation on the Thunder behind just Gilgeous-Alexander and points. When he's on the floor, they turn into a great rebounding team. When he's off it, they can't grab a miss to save their life.

You saw that here once again. The scoring and playmaking weren't there, but Hartenstein made up for it on the boards. Even in his limited minutes. Almost all of OKC's second-chance buckets sprouted from his ability to crash the glass and get misses.

The Thunder are a completely different team when Hartenstein suits up. Not only on the boards, but he adds a lob threat dynamic. Nobody else on the roster can say they're as lethal an alley-oop partner as the seven-footer. He helped Williams put this away in the fourth quarter.

Isaiah Joe: B

Relocating to the left wing, Joe caught Hartenstein's slick bounce pass. He didn't need long to pull up from deep. Swishing in the outside jumper, the 26-year-old pushed OKC's lead to 20 points as they avalanched the Bulls on the scoreboard.

Joe finished with 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting, three rebounds and one assist. He shot 4-of-9 from 3 and went 1-of-1 on free throws. He also had one steal.

Putting this one away, Joe made a pair of outside jumpers in the final frame. He had nine points in the quarter. The Thunder's bench lineup ensured Gilgeous-Alexander wouldn't need to check in again. On a fully-loaded roster, he's found a way to get shots up.

Playing alongside Williams and Hartenstein, Joe has turned into a weapon for those two. The Thunder have had a group effort with their bench lineup offense. He adds flavor with his range. As long as he stays in motion, his gravity alone is a plus for the halfcourt offense.

In a game where everybody basically had a moment, Joe showed off his range on his outside makes. The Thunder are going to need his scoring for the rest of the way. When they were completely beaten up, he showed he could add more to his plate in terms of volume. Now, it's about translating that confidence over to a second-unit role.

Jaylin Williams: A

Tiptoeing the baseline, Williams grabbed the rebound. He was rewarded for his precision on the other end. As the trailer, Caruso swung the ball back to him. He calmly rattled in the outside jumper to put the Thunder ahead for good.

Williams finished with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting and 10 rebounds. He shot 2-of-4 from 3 and went 2-of-2 on free throws. He also had two blocks and two steals.

Just a nonchalant double-double off the bench. No biggie. Business as usual for Williams, who's normalized these types of outings. The Bulls' Frankenstein-together frontcourt gave him a boost in confidence. Much like the rest of the Thunder.

At this point, Williams is a fixture in OKC's rotation. Not just matchup-dependent. Momentum has been on his side for months. He's playing some of his best basketball. It's cool to see him enjoy such a hot streak from the outside, but the rebounds speak for themselves. He's transformed his game across the board.

What a luxury Williams has turned into. You could argue he's made the most progress among anybody else on the Thunder roster. From a third-string center to a legitimate rotation piece. Exciting to see how much this translates over to the NBA playoffs.

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This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Player grades: 22-0 run helps Thunder get 131-113 win over Bulls

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