Thunder match 5th-largest victory margin in NBA history, blowout Blazers by 62 points

Thursday night in the NBA featured a couple of massive blowouts, highlighted by the matching of the fifth-largest margin of victory in NBA history. 

The Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 139-77, a 62-point victory that moved the Thunder into a tie with the Minnesota Timberwolves at the top of the Western Conference. 

It was the second-worst loss in the history of the Portland franchise, only eclipsed by a 65-point loss in 1998. 

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“It was almost like a perfect storm, to be honest with you,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said. “Nothing really worked for us.”

The biggest blowout in NBA history involved OKC when the Thunder lost by 73 points in 2021. 

Thunder point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 31 points to lead OKC, while Josh Giddey finished with 13 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. 

“I thought we cleared a couple hurdles tonight,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “I thought the first one was the start of the game, how ready we were to play and the energy we were able to generate, obviously, with a tough schedule, which is a step forward. It’s mind over matter. And then the other hurdle was playing with a lead … I thought we played pretty well with a lead, both ends of the floor.”

It was not the only blowout in the NBA on Thursday, as the Boston Celtics fell to the Milwaukee Bucks by 33 points. 

Playing their second game in as many nights, the Celtics were down by as many as 43 points in Milwaukee. 

“We just didn’t have it tonight,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “That can happen from time to time.”

Two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo led the way for Milwaukee, finishing the night with 24 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. 

“Hopefully we can keep this up not just against the Boston Celtics, not just when we have two days off or not when we have not played well,” Antetokounmpo added. “Even if we’ve played well and even if we’ve played bad, be able to come in the game and play with the same urgency and with the same focus and with the same energy.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.