Moments after Stephen Curry’s fingertips left the game-winning ball, an entire building paused.
The Paycom Center’s collective jaw dropped, its fans’ hands either twirling dramatically in hopes of a review or waving aggressively at their team’s fate. Curry delivered an all-time scoop shot worthy of freezing a crowd. But it was the surrounding scenery that set time still.
Draymond Green’s hand hovering near the cookie jar. Josh Giddey’s grip on the nylon. Too many angles, too many factors, and enough commotion for officials to contemplate why, what was certainly the league’s most thrilling in-season tournament game ever, couldn’t yet be decided.
Hours later, crew chief Mitchell Ervin gave his view of the scene.
“It was clear and conclusive evidence that Draymond (Green) does not touch the ball,” Ervin said. “Although Draymond does touch the rim, he does not touch the ball, nor does him touching the rim cause the ball to take an unnatural bounce therefore a basketball violation does not occur on the play.”
By the end of the saga, the Oklahoma City Thunder was left with 0.2 seconds, a virtually sealed 141-139 loss and a lengthy, etched memory of Curry’s burying shot.
One fateful left-right cross from Curry unraveled what, to that point, might’ve been as perfect an outing as possible sans Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
“I thought it was a great game to be in for our team,” coach Mark Daigneault said. “It was a classic game where every possession mattered, obviously right up to the end of the game.
“There’s no place we’d rather be, and there’s no team we’d rather be playing than a team that’s as battle tested as they are.”
The “We Believe” Warriors — scratch that — the Thunder dressed in its new city edition uniforms shot 60.2% from the field to go toe-to-toe with Golden State, connecting on 51.7% of its 3-pointers. For as big a hole as SGA’s absence left (and will continue to leave), it seemed OKC’s lineup each had their own heroic moments that led to the final possession.
Chet Holmgren with his unreal fluidity and shooting touch that gave him a career-high 24 points; Josh Giddey with his series of awkward fourth-quarter floaters to finish with 18 points; Isaiah Joe with a pair of late 3-pointers; Lu Dort didn’t miss until his 10th shot.
For every offensive question mark posed in SGA’s absence, OKC had an answer.
Who’d handle the bulk of the playmaking and on-ball creation? Jalen Williams, save for his six turnovers, had that covered: 18 points, eight assists, and a handful of accurate kick outs when Andrew Wiggins cut off his pathway.
How would a rookie like Cason Wallace fare in his first start? The young bull played a team-high 36 minutes, scoring 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting and eventually learning to properly contest an all-time shooter like Klay Thompson.
Who’d handle the shotmaking? Well, Dort went mindless for a three-and-D masterclass, and Giddey’s floaters were enough to earn him street cred with Holmgren.
“Without him in that fourth quarter, it’s not even a last possession game,” Holmgren said of Giddey. “… Tough guy right here. I don’t know what neighborhood he’s from in Australia, but he’s a tough dude.”
The problem was Golden State had just as many answers: it shot 53.3% and featured six players who scored at least 17 points. Former Thunder forward Dario Saric did the heavy lifting for some time. He aced his gig as Chris Paul’s pick-and-pop partner with four 3-pointers while the Warriors’ lauded shooters settled into video game shotmaking.
Klay Thompson drilled tough shots en route to four 3-pointers. Curry emoted his way to 28 points, seven assists and eight rebounds.
And in the end he cupped the only answer that mattered.
“We had every chance to win that game,” Giddey said, “but plays like that happen and calls like that are made, and you’ve just gotta move on.”