Player Grades: Thunder Enjoy Stress-free 121-92 Win Over Nets

After another Brooklyn mishap, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander barely needed to lift a finger to extend his historic 20-point streak. Another live-ball turnover allowed the reigning MVP to go up for a rare dunk to cross the mark in the opening minutes of the second half. That was the only drama left.

The Oklahoma City Thunder made easy work of the Brooklyn Nets with a 121-92 win. I can see why both of these teams have near symmetrical records as they're on opposite sides of the NBA highway.

The Thunder didn't need long to put this one away. Gilgeous-Alexander faced a whisper of 'free-throw merchant' chants early on. That proved to be the best defense Barclays offered against the reigning MVP. They had a 28-11 lead after the first quarter.

Things only got worse from there — for Brooklyn, at least. After sitting on ice for the last couple of games, Kenrich Williams checked in energized. He had three steals in five minutes. That was part of a bigger trend where the Nets coughed up the ball every other possession.

Some of the scores were pretty surreal to see pixelated. At one point, the Thunder were up 44-16. Gilgeous-Alexander got a few buckets in transition as Brooklyn committed live-ball turnovers. They had 32 points in the second frame. OKC entered halftime with an unreal 60-24 lead.

The Thunder had more made field goals than the Nets had raw points. Gilgeous-Alexander and Jared McCain combined for 26 points at halftime — more than what Brooklyn had in total. Makes you wonder if the 1-16 March Madness games will be more competitive than this.

Growing a lead as high as 42 points, the Thunder turned the second half into a glorified scrimmage. In it, they tried to check off several agendas. One was to see Aaron Wiggins snap out of his month-long slump. That finally happened as a corner 3-pointer and steal-and-dunk sequence got him back into a groove.

With over six minutes left, Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren checked out. It'd be a short shift for OKC's All-Star duo. Both teams had 31 points apiece in the third quarter — as the Nets enjoyed returning to playing some NBA-level offense.

The Thunder had a 91-55 lead after the third frame. The fourth quarter turned into garbage time. I started writing this during the game. Finally, for the first time in a while, the reigning NBA champion enjoyed a blowout win. Feels like it's been a minute since they've had one of those — after the first one-third of the regular season was littered with them.

There was at least a must-watch factor involved in the final dozen minutes beyond the score. As the latest two-way newbie, Payton Sandfort scored his first NBA points on a corner 3-pointer. The entire OKC bench celebrated with him. He took home a memento with the game ball and conducted the postgame bark. The Thunder scored 30 points in the final frame.

The Thunder shot 53% from the field and went 14-of-35 (40%) from 3. They shot 17-of-22 on free throws. They had 26 assists on 45 baskets. Six Thunder players scored double-digit points.

Gilgeous-Alexander had a cool 20 points and six assists. McCain had a season-best 26 points and three rebounds. Holmgren finished with 11 points and two rebounds. Wiggins tallied 17 points and seven rebounds. Isaiah Joe had 13 points and four assists. Ajay Mitchell finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.

Meanwhile, the Nets shot 37% from the field and went 11-of-35 (31.4%) from 3. They shot 23-of-31 on free throws. They had 17 assists on 29 baskets. Four Nets players scored double-digit points.

Jalen Wilson had 15 points and five rebounds. Nolan Traore finished with 13 points and six assists. Chaney Johnson had 12 points and seven rebounds. Ochai Agbaji tallied 10 points and two rebounds.

This was a good and productive win for the Thunder. Can't take the gimme's for granted. Even if this game was over before it even started, they still needed to go out there and actually get the job done. You saw the reigning NBA champions do that from the jump against the youngest team in the league.

Everybody on the Thunder checked in. All of your starters weren't super stressed in minutes on this road back-to-back. Gilgeous-Alexander sleepwalked his way to another 20 points. When you get the chance to pad your record against NBA cupcakes, you can't fumble those golden opportunities. OKC hasn't had that problem in years.

Let's look at Thunder player grades:

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: B

Stuck behind Traore, Gilgeous-Alexander gripped the ball away. He swiped it out of his possession for the brute-strength steal. Bringing the ball up, he took it all the way home as he got past Noah Clowney with ease for the transition layup. The reigning MVP played in rookie mode.

Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 20 points on 8-of-9 shooting, six assists and three rebounds. He shot 4-of-5 on free throws. He also had three steals.

Little surprising to see Gilgeous-Alexander play the second night of a back-to-back. But considering how light his workload was, it all makes sense. He enjoyed a double-whammy as he checked off another game closer to staying eligible for MVP and an easy-peasy opponent to keep his NBA-record 20-point streak alive.

Not much energy was required out of the reigning MVP. Gilgeous-Alexander drove through Brooklyn's defense. On a roster filled with guys who can't even legally drink yet, he had no problem getting to the cup. Knocking down a couple of mid-range jumpers, his sole miss occurred in that area.

Gilgeous-Alexander had 16 points in the first half. That was just a few buckets away from matching the Nets' total. Reaching 20 points, he clocked earlier than usual with just 26 minutes. It's been a while, but he was able to enjoy sitting out a fourth quarter.

Business as usual for Gilgeous-Alexander. The Thunder probably didn't need him to suit up to get the win, but no harm in him doing so. Like other NBA superstars of his stature, he enjoyed stat-padding a bit against one of the league's worst teams. Things were too easy for him.

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 18, 2026

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 19, 2026

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 19, 2026

Jared McCain: A-plus

Left wide open near the 'Barclays Center' logo, McCain received the ball as Joe was doubled. Terance Mann attempted the late close-out, but it didn't matter. The 22-year-old calmly swished in the deep-range outside jumper. He had a flurry of buckets.

McCain finished with 26 points on 9-of-16 shooting, three rebounds and two assists. He shot 5-of-9 from 3 and went 3-of-4 on free throws. He also had two blocks.

On a night when everybody ate, McCain ended up being the top scorer. Considering how bottom-tier the Nets are, it shouldn't be a shocker to see him go off. He had 16 points in the second half. The range was shown off as he pulled up from all areas beyond the perimeter.

McCain has been in OKC for a month, but his scoring remains novel. Seldom have the Thunder had a role player who can come in and be a textbook microwave scorer. You saw that happen once again on a fun night where the final result was known in the opening moments.

Just an unreal weapon that the Thunder acquired. McCain has been awesome as an outside shooter. Of course, need to acknowledge the caveat of it being against the Nets. But that doesn't discredit him for putting up a season-high points. He's been a seamless fit in OKC's rotation. Even if the point total isn't as high as it was tonight, he's had his fair share of big-time buckets.

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 18, 2026

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 19, 2026

Aaron Wiggns: A-minus

Stuck in a rut for a month, Wiggins finally snapped out of it. A casual corner 3-pointer was the bucket that opened the floodgates. Once he saw one drill in, he returned to his scoring ways. A few seconds later, he added to his bravado with a steal-and-dunk sequence.

Wiggins finished with 17 points on 7-of-16 shooting, seven rebounds and three assists. He shot 3-of-7 from 3. He also had two steals.

It's about time. You could argue Wiggins was the biggest winner of this lopsided affair. He badly needed a positive outing after being out of synch for a month. Given the starting nod, OKC's plans worked as the 27-year-old had a monstrous second half to salvage things.

It all happened after the halftime break. Stuck at two points, things felt grim. If Wiggins couldn't go off against a bottom-four defense, then it just wasn't going to happen. But 13 points in the third quarter must've felt euphoric for the bucket-getter. The outside jumper couldn't miss. He finally finished around the rim. It was a vintage performance.

In all likelihood, the Thunder will need Wiggins at certain junctures in the NBA playoffs. It happened a couple of times in last year's championship run. You need a little bit from everybody for a successful trip. This was the perfect get-right game for him. Let's see if he can build off this momentum.

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 19, 2026

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 19, 2026

Isaiah Joe: B

Testing his range, Joe swished in a deep left-wing outside jumper. Bordering the sidelines, the 26-year-old enjoyed his time with the aux cord. He was the latest Thunder player to put up some numbers and polish his season averages against a rebuilding squad.

Joe finished with 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting, four assists and three rebounds. He shot 3-of-7 from 3 and went 2-of-2 on free throws.

Perhaps nobody else loves garbage time more than Joe. And I'm not saying that in a cynical way. But he does a good job at just driving the bus for the Thunder in the minutes they're required to play out. He scored nine points in the fourth quarter of a game that most tuned out for.

Once Joe realized the game was in hand, he got a little experimental. He tested his range with some deep outside jumpers. At that point, no reason why he shouldn't. He's one of the few Thunder players whom opposing defenses respect. If he can stretch the floor out in the halfcourt, that stretches defenses thin to consequential levels.

The Thunder are on a roll. We know the obvious reasons why. Gilgeous-Alexander has played like the MVP favorite. Holmgren is playing some of his best two-way basketball. Yada. Yada. But down the long list of reasons, Joe putting up some of his best couple of months is on there as well.

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This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Player grades: Thunder enjoy stress-free 121-92 win over Nets