The Oklahoma City Thunder are one of the hottest teams in the NBA for plenty of reasons.
Two-time All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 32.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 2.4 steals and 1.5 blocks during the Thunder’s 11-game winning streak.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s performances, as good as they’ve been, have been expected. But rookie Ajay Mitchell’s recent surge wasn’t as easy to predict.
Gilgeous-Alexander, Mitchell and Oklahoma City will try to extend their winning streak when they host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday.
A win would tie the Thunder’s longest winning streak since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City ahead of the 2008-09 season.
Tuesday’s game is the first of the season between the teams and the second of a five-game homestand for the Thunder.
Mitchell, a second-round pick in this year’s draft, has surged of late, giving Oklahoma City a versatile option both to pair on the floor with Gilgeous-Alexander and to be a primary ball-handler when the latter is on the bench.
That’s been particularly important with Alex Caruso having missed the last three games with a right hip strain.
“He is just another guy that is a steady hand on the wheel,” coach Mark Daigneault said. “When he has the ball in his hands, he makes very sound plays. He can score, he can shoot, he can play in the midrange, he can get to the rim. Then, he makes the right reads. So, he can play on the ball, he can play off the ball.”
After averaging 5.3 points and 1.7 assists in 15.4 minutes over the first 27 games of the season, Mitchell is averaging 13.0 points and 2.3 assists in 22.6 minutes over the last four games. He’s also shooting 64.5 percent from the field during that stretch, and his turnovers have ticked down despite the greater usage.
But while Mitchell’s offensive numbers have been “loud,” as Daigneault said, it’s on the other end of the floor where Mitchell has earned his expanded playing time.
“He defends in a way where you can play him,” Daigneault said. “He does it on both ends.”
While the Thunder have the longest active winning stretch in the NBA, the Timberwolves also enter with some momentum thanks to a three-game winning streak.
Those victories have come over a trio of teams near the Timberwolves in the Western Conference standings – Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.
After entering the month below .500, Minnesota has gone 8-4 so far in December.
Donte DiVincenzo, acquired from the Knicks in an offseason trade, has been a big piece of that turnaround.
After averaging just 8.9 points and shooting 35.4 percent overall and 32.6 percent on 3-pointers through October and November, DiVincenzo is averaging 11.5 points on 44.3 percent overall shooting and 40.8 percent from beyond the arc in December.
“He’s been himself,” Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert said of DiVincenzo. “Just making playing on both ends, making high IQ plays, making the right play and knocking down big shots. That’s who he is.”
–Field Level Media
