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Thunder Continue to Cruise; Crush Lakers 125-106

October 31, 2018

Los Angeles, CA -- If the first week of the season is any indication of the future, then every team in the NBA should be terrified of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Led by All-NBA big man Shaquille O'Neal, the Thunder are off to a blistering 5-0 start and their average margin of victory has been 14.6 points. While Shaq and Paul George have given the Thunder exactly what the team expects from their superstars, it's been the ascension of second year point-guard Dennis Smith Jr. that is making the difference thus far.

And in their most recent win against the Los Angeles Lakers, Smith Jr., who drew some comparisons to Russell Westbrook after he was drafted, put on a Westbrookian performance with 28 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists. Shaq led the Thunder with 42 points, 19 rebounds, and 6 blocks, but the young point-guard's performance is what the media was abuzz about after the game.

"Dennis is a very talented young player who has the potential to be very special," commented Thunder head coach Billy Donovan after the game. "What he did tonight...not many guys in our league are capable of controlling a game like that, by getting by his man and to the rim at will by using their explosiveness and athleticism."

Paul George was the complimentary third piece in OKC's seemingly new-found "Big 3" with 19 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds. No other Thunder player scored in double-digits, but all three of Dario Saric, Jeremy Lin, and Ed Davis contributed 8-points apiece.

On the losing side, LeBron James had an eye-popping performance with 36 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists. Victor Oladipo helped with 20 points and 6 assists. Isaiah Thomas was able to contribute 15 points and 7 assists.

Dennis Smith Jr. just missed a triple-double with his 28 point, 9 rebound, 9 assist performance.


LeBron James did LeBron James-like things with 36 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Thunder.


Shaquille O'Neal continued his domination with 42 points, 19 rebounds, and 6 blocks.

Oklahoma City Thunder (5-0) at Los Angeles Lakers (1-2)
Oct 31, 2018 1 2 3 4 Final Oklahoma City 27 31 32 35 125 Los Angeles 24 28 29 25 106 Top Performers Oklahoma City Thunder Shaquille O'Neal - 42 pts, 19 reb, 6 blk Dennis Smith Jr. - 28 pts, 9 reb, 9 ast Los Angeles Lakers LeBron James - 36 pts, 7 reb, 7 ast Victor Oladipo - 20 pts, 6 ast, 3 reb, 3 stl	Team Stats Comparison OKC LAL FG Made-Att 54/94 40/85 3PT Made-Att 5/18 8/22 FT Made-Att 12/18 18/24 Rebounds 48 40 Assists 37 37 Turnovers 13 13 Steals 7 7 Blocks 6 5
Oklahoma City Thunder STARTERS MIN FG 3PT FT REB AST STL BLK TO PTS Shaquille O'Neal 38 20/28 0/0 2/3 19 2 2 6 2 42 Paul George 36 8/15 1/4 2/2 4 5 1 0 2 19 Dennis Smith Jr. 32 11/16 3/6 3/4 9 9 0 0 2 28 Dario Saric 30 4/7 0/1 0/0 4 5 1 0 1 8 J.J. Redic 27 1/5 0/1 0/0 2 2 0 0 3 2 BENCH MIN FG 3PT FT REB AST STL BLK TO PTS Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 21 1/4 0/1 1/3 0 1 1 0 1 3 Jeremy Lin 16 3/8 1/4 1/2 2 9 1 0 2 8 Dwight Powell 13 0/2 0/1 2/2 3 1 1 0 0 2 Omri Casspi 13 2/3 0/0 1/2 1 3 0 0 0 5 Ed Davis 11 4/6 0/0 0/0 4 0 0 0 1 8
Los Angeles Lakers STARTERS MIN FG 3PT FT REB AST STL BLK TO PTS LeBron James 40 13/25 3/7 7/10 7 7 0 0 1 36 Victor Oladipo 35 8/14 1/3 3/4 3 6 3 1 0 20 Isaiah Thomas 31 5/11 3/5 2/2 0 7 0 0 2 15 Al Horford 31 1/5 0/1 0/0 4 3 1 0 0 2 Zach Randolph 26 4/8 0/0 2/2 6 6 0 0 3 10 BENCH MIN FG 3PT FT REB AST STL BLK TO PTS Markieff Morris 21 5/6 0/0 2/2 5 2 0 0 1 12 Collin Sexton 17 2/9 1/2 1/2 2 1 0 0 2 6 Dewayne Dedmon 17 1/2 0/1 1/2 9 0 0 3 0 3 Ron Baker 14 1/3 0/2 0/0 3 4 1 1 3 2 P.J. Tucker 11 0/2 0/1 0/0 1 1 2 0 1 0