Chet Holmgren’s bold response to Thunder’s string of losses in OT win vs. Jazz

OKLAHOMA CITY — Chet Holmgren kept his promise, and the Oklahoma City Thunder really needed it in a 129-125 win against the Utah Jazz in overtime on Monday. The Thunder avoided its third consecutive loss by bouncing back in a hard-fought win against the Jazz. After blowing a 20-point lead, Holmgren helped the Thunder erase an eight-point deficit in the fourth quarter and pushed Oklahoma City ahead in OT.

Holmgren vowed to play better after the Thunder’s back-to-back losses on Monday, and didn’t disappoint, making critical plays that kept the Jazz against the ropes. Jalen Williams found Holmgren on an alley-oop that pulled the Thunder, on the verge of wiping out the Jazz’s eight-point lead, to within one. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sent the game into overtime.

Then, Holmgren cleaned the glass, grabbing five of his dozen rebounds, including two offensive rebounds, and a put-back dunk that gave the Thunder a two-point lead (124-122) with 29.7 seconds left. Holmgren tallied 23 points and three blocks.

“Obviously, that’s a taxing game, but just continuing to give whatever is left in the tank out there,” Holmgren said. “It wasn’t pretty for a lot of the game. I definitely don’t think things flowed great at times, but at the end of the day, sometimes you gotta win ugly.”

Holmgren put forth the kind of effort that was missing from the 7-footer and the rest of the Thunder as the offense grew stale amidst the Charlotte Hornets’ impressive shooting. Still, Oklahoma City responded by stringing together defensive stops that yielded high-percentage looks for Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren, and the Thunder, despite coughing up a 20-point advantage.

Holmgren says the Thunder’s off day helped him and his teammates regroup mentally and physically, as the defending champions avoided a three-game losing streak and improved to 31-7.

Chet Holmgren vows to look ‘in the mirror’ after Thunder loss

During his postgame media availability, Thunder forward Chet Holmgren held himself accountable for his lackluster performance in Monday’s 124-97 blowout loss to the Charlotte Hornets. He finished with 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting, six rebounds, and two assists against the Hornets. However, for Holmgren, his struggles extended beyond the box score, as the Thunder needed a significant boost on both ends of the floor, which came to no avail.

Holmgren didn’t hold back when talking about his performance in the Thunder’s 27-point loss to the Hornets.

“I personally could have been better. I should have been better on the glass, should have been at the rim; I should have gave us a better spark,” Holmgren said. “The last thing I want to look at is shots, whether they go in or not, I feel like, for the most part, tonight, we had the right intentions with what shots we shot.”

Allowing the Hornets to settle into their offense, Holmgren and the Thunder made the necessary corrections against the Jazz by consistently applying defensive pressure, especially in the fourth quarter and overtime.

“We allowed them to be comfortable. They played with a lot of pace. They played with a lot of force within their actions, and we just didn’t match that,” Holmgren added. “You can look at whatever factors you want to look at as to why we didn’t, but at the end of the day, we just have to be better at that.

“And execute in those areas, because it’s hard to win a game when you’re just kind of playing behind the eight ball for most of the night. And again, I’m gonna always look myself in the mirror first, and say, I gotta be better for us. And I’m gonna do that.”

Without Isaiah Hartenstein or Jaylin Williams, Holmgren is taking on more on the defensive end of the floor, but continues to be a constant thorn on offense as an above-the-rim lob threat or a put-back bucket. It’s also worth noting that Holmgren is getting to the line more often, averaging 4.8 free-throw attempts in his last four games, while scoring at a 60% clip from the floor.

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