Frustrating and nervous – that’s how you can describe the Oklahoma City Thunder’s fantastic defense all season. On Wednesday, the Thunder showed in their team’s second preseason game that they are as good as advertised.

When the team first looked at the Thunder with the most players – only Kenrich Williams, Jaylin Williams and Nikola Topic are on the sidelines due to injuries – Oklahoma City should have had all reservations lifted.

Last year’s 57-win club, which was in the top five in both offense and defense, has improved significantly. The Thunder sprinted to a 12-2 run over the Rockets, triggering a Houston timeout.

Deflections, steals and blocks hampered Houston’s offense early in this game, providing a glimpse of what fans can expect in the 2024-25 season with championship ambitions at the Thunder’s feet.

Rising star Chet Holmgren aggressively went to the rim in the first frame, driving eight free throw attempts to the free throw line in as many minutes. Jalen Williams rose to the challenge presented to him in training camp and hit three-pointers with a 2-for-4 shot from long range in the first quarter.

The Thunder’s ability to switch things up defensively made life difficult for the Rockets’ offense, and the whiplash that Mark Daigneault can allow opposing teams to change the lineup to include double bigs for the first time was a welcome sight.

At halftime, the Thunder had a 60-47 lead and were firing on all cylinders. Holmgren and Williams scored 10 and 15 points respectively, tying Gilgeous-Alexander for their highest score to date.

A 20-8 OKC run capped the second quarter in which Daigneault played a perfect game, mixing lineups and switching players in and out to keep the Rockets guessing. The Thunder controlled the glass 23-21, forcing 13 turnovers and knocking down five shots.

Oklahoma City came out of the locker room with a whole new look after playing against their starters the entire first half. After the break, Cason Wallace, Isaiah Joe, Aaron Wiggins, Dillon Jones and Ousmane Dieng were the first five on the floor.

The Houston Rockets narrowed the gap by maintaining their regular rotation figures in the second half and got within one at the end of the third frame.

The Thunder called on their junior players to finish this game, as Ousmaen Dieng was the only player with more than two years of experience to take the field in the final frame and Adam Flagler was the only non-freshman.

Oklahoma City continued to battle back and forth against Houston in the final 12 minutes. It was Dieng and the rookies who impressed Oklahoma City late. Timely throws from Jones and Ajay Mitchell made the difference in this contest.

However, the young group couldn’t get enough stops to hold off the Rockets in regulation time. Oklahoma City was without Jones in overtime because the rookie committed a foul on its final possession.

In overtime, the Thunder didn’t have enough offense to overcome the Rockets’ bench rush and fell to 1-1 in the preseason, 122-113.

Oklahoma City will be back in action on Thursday in Tulsa, Oklahoma to take on the New Zealand Breakers.

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