Chet Holmgren answered his Game 7 flop against the San Antonio Spurs with a strong performance in the season opener on Tuesday night, recording 14 points, seven rebounds and four blocks as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Spurs 116-104 in San Antonio.
Holmgren also served as the primary defender against Victor Wembanyama, who struggled offensively and finished 1-of-13 from the floor.
The performance followed a meek exit for the All-NBA power forward/center in the Western Conference finals. He scored four points and grabbed four rebounds in a Game 7 home loss to the Spurs.
Gilgeous-Alexander praises Holmgren’s impact
Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points and credited Holmgren for changing the game.
“Chet is an All-NBA talent on both ends of the floor,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “When he’s himself, your team is better. It’s as simple as that. When he’s aggressive, when he’s confident, when he’s out there playing his game, he makes your basketball team better. It’s no coincidence: He played better; we had a good night tonight. The box score doesn’t show everything he does out there. He changes everything for us.”
Scuffle adds spice to a budding rivalry
An early second-quarter scrap offered some symbolism for Holmgren and his teammates. Holmgren landed with a thud, and as he got back to his feet, his teammates had his back.
Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox committed a flagrant foul 1 that left the lanky 7-footer sprawled on the floor in the middle of the paint. The other Thunder players on the floor converged to confront Fox. After a review, officials assessed four technical fouls: one on Wembanyama and one on each Williams on Oklahoma City’s roster (Jaylin, Jalen and Kenrich).
“I’m going to get up and keep hooping, but I appreciate my teammates having my back,” Holmgren said. “I’m not necessarily sure how exactly we get three techs for reactions to something else. I don’t totally understand that.
“But at the end of the day, I feel like anything that you’re not willing to reciprocate is an advantage for the other team. So if they want to play physical, we have to match that, and the refs are going to do their job in keeping that within the guidelines.”
As Holmgren was posting up, Fox grabbed him by the shoulders from behind and tossed him to the floor. Fox implied that Holmgren embellished to sell the foul.
“[If] somebody grabs you like that and you go flying on the floor like that, you’ve got other problems to worry about,” Fox said. “I didn’t throw him that hard, I promise you.”
The Thunder considered Fox’s force on the play unnecessary and reacted accordingly, adding a bit of spice to what is shaping up to be the NBA’s next great rivalry. Jaylin Williams was the first Thunder player to arrive on the scene, and he went face to chest with Wembanyama, who intervened on Fox’s behalf. Jalen Williams and Kenrich Williams joined in a split-second later.
“I didn’t really like the play,” Jalen Williams said. “I just ran in there. If anybody’s ever been in a scuffle, there’s really not a lot of thinking to it. It’s just, make sure I have my guys back in there. In NBA scuffles, just grab whoever’s close and just push. Cost me $2,500, though.
“It’s the first ever Williams, Williams, Williams T’d up. Happy to be a part of it.”