The Oklahoma City Thunder collected their best win of the young season yet in their 130-123 overtime victory over the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.
After trailing by 18 points, the Thunder mounted a comeback thanks to their two-man game of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren, who combined for 76 points.
Holmgren turned in his best performance yet of his rookie season. The 2022 No. 2 pick finished with 36 points on 14-of-22 shooting, 10 rebounds, five assists and two blocks.
Holmgren collected a signature moment to his rookie resume when he hit a turnaround 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left to force overtime. The miraculous bucket stunned the Warriors and helped OKC come away with its second consecutive road win at Chase Center.
CHET HITS A THREE TO SEND IT INTO OT 🤯
35 PTS FOR THE ROOKIE ‼️
Thunder-Warriors | Live on the NBA App
📲 https://t.co/wVq4EV5oG0 pic.twitter.com/eRBGpS2DyD— NBA (@NBA) November 19, 2023
In the potential season-defining win, Holmgren made franchise history. The 36 points marked the most points scored by a rookie in Thunder history.
For those wondering about Kevin Durant, his rookie season wasn’t included in this since it occurred during the final year of the Seattle Supersonics.
With that caveat acknowledged, Holmgren did join Durant as the only Sonics/Thunder rookie to record 35-plus points, 10-plus rebounds and five-plus assists in a single game.
No matter how you spin it, what Holmgren did on Saturday was special. The game-tying 3-pointer is a nice bow to tie it all together, but don’t let that downplay the rest of his dominating night.
