Dort sets tone for Thunder in his preseason debut
Luguentz Dort didn’t ease into action Sunday night in his first preseason game. That wouldn’t be very Lu Dort of him.
Dort, who recently passed concussion protocols, was in seek-and-destroy mode in the Thunder’s 144-97 trouncing of Israeli club Maccabi Ra’anana.
Dort missed his first 3-point attempt, but then he calibrated his shot. The 23year-old guard, now a $15 million-dollar man, scored 23 points in 18 first-half minutes. Dort, who rested in the second half, shot 8-of-15 from the floor, including 4-of-9 from 3-point range.
It was Dort’s first competitive game in eight months. A shoulder injury, which required surgery, sidelined him for the second half of last season.
“It felt good,” Dort said. “It’s been a long time.”
He was tasked with defending 37year-old Ra’anana guard Jason Siggers, who deserves a huge shoutout.
Siggers scored 40 points on 15-of-26 shooting. The Dallas native played college ball at Albany, and he’s played professionally around the globe.
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault was surprised when he was told that both he and Siggers are 37.
“Just makes me feel out of shape,” Daigneault said. “Good for him. He’s a good player.”
Both teams shot the ball well from 3point range, but Ra’anana was 10-of-25 while the Thunder made them in bunches (21-of-44).
The Thunder had 42 assists on 51 made baskets despite not having guards Josh Giddey (rest), Tre Mann (rest) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (MCL sprain).
“The best part about that is we have to rely on five guys in order to playmake,” Daigneault said before the game. “We can’t just hand the ball to one person and have them make every play. Even when you have a guy like that, which we do, that only takes you so far. You have to have a style that the whole is better than the sum of the parts, and our success offensively tonight depends on that.”
One hundred and forty-four points later, it’s fair to say the Thunder did just fine.
Aleksej Pokusevski dished no-look passes and sank 3-pointers.
This is the Poku that Thunder fans have dreamt about since he was drafted two years ago. A 7-footer with guardlike skills.
Years 1 and 2 of the Poku experience were rocky — and that’s putting it kindly — but Pokusevski looks comfortable heading into his third Thunder season.
“I feel like he definitely took a step up,” Dort said.
Poku’s strong play in the preseason continued Sunday with 15 points, 10 assists and five rebounds in 26 minutes. He was 3-of-6 from 3-point range and didn’t commit a turnover.
There’s a two-season sample size of Pokusevski being a questionable NBA player, but now he’s playing like he belongs. It’s time to see if he keeps it up in real games against stiffer competition.
On a more granular level, Pokusevski started at center Sunday night. Most of his minutes this preseason have come at power forward.
“He’s got his strength up to a point where we feel comfortable in certain matchups getting him there,” Daigneault said. “It makes us more fluid offensively.”
Ousmane Dieng does it all
Ousmane Dieng grabbed a defensive rebound.
“Push, Ous,” Daigneault screamed.
Dieng, a 6-foot-10 rookie forward, brought the ball up the floor and initiated the offense. Later in the same firstquarter possession, Dieng drove the lane and dished to Pokusevski who laid in the ball.
It’s far too early to say if Dieng, a 19year-old Frenchman, was the right pick for the Thunder at No. 11, but it’s already apparent that the ideal version of Dieng fits the Thunder’s system, which prioritizes length and skill.
Dieng nailed a step-back 3-pointer on the Thunder’s first offensive possession of the third quarter, and he ended the third quarter with a Euro-step dunk.
Dieng had 18 points, four rebounds and four assists on 8-of-12 shooting.
“He’s definitely talented,” Daigneault said. “He definitely has a court sense. Really just needs to hit the gas on offense and be able to compete on defense.”
Dort is doing his best to help Dieng. “Sometimes I have to get at him in French because he’s still kind of new to English,” Dort said.
Who is Maccabi Ra’anana?
Maccabi Ra’anana plays in the Israeli National League — a second-tier league in Israel. Ra’anana is a city of 75,000 that borders the Mediterranean Sea. It’s 12 miles north of Tel Aviv.
Oklahoma City is Maccabi Ra’anana’s third NBA stop this preseason. They also played at the Trail Blazers and Clippers — losing by 40 and 53 points.
“Understand the stakes for these teams,” Daigneault said before the game. “They’re coming in here with a lot to play for … You’re playing an opponent that’s coming at you, and that’s a good thing. That’s not always the case in the preseason, honestly, with NBA teams.”
Ra’anana had a few former NBA players, including Norris Cole, Terrence Jones and Jeff Adrien. Cole played 13 games for the Thunder in 2016-17 — his last NBA season.
Sunday was the Thunder’s fourth of six preseason games. Six is a lot. The Mavericks, by comparison, are only playing three preseason games.
Daigneault said a busy preseason schedule was by design.
“Getting these guys out there, seeing what we’ve got, putting a lot of different lineups out there, looking at a million things — these reps are more valuable for a young player than somebody who’s been in the league for five years, 10 years,” Daigneault said.
Thunder tip-ins
h Jalen Williams (strep throat) and Ousmane Dieng (knee contusion) were back for the Thunder. Dieng started and Williams came off the bench.
h Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (MCL sprain), Mike Muscala (ankle) and Kenrich Williams (groin) remained out with injuries. SGA’s return is TBD. Muscala has already been ruled out for the rest of the preseason and the Thunder is simply being cautious with Kenrich Williams.
h A slew of Thunder players rested Sunday night: Josh Giddey, Darius Bazley, Tre Mann and Jeremiah RobinsonEarl.
h All of the absences led to a weird and wonderful Thunder starting lineup: Waters, Dort, Wiggins, Dieng, Pokusevski.
h In the second quarter, Mark Daigneault told Ousmane Dieng to check in for Jalen Williams. “The other one,” Daigneault told a confused Dieng.
h Jalen Williams, the guard from Santa Clara, had a 15-point, 13-assist double-double.
h Jaylin Williams, the center from Arkansas, had a 14-point, 12-rebound double-double.
h Jaden Shackelford, who played with the Thunder in Summer League, went 2-of-3 from 3-point range in his preseason debut. Shackelford is on an Exhibit 10 contract. He’s likely to join the G League OKC Blue.