The Oklahoma City Thunder had a whole night of frustration on Saturday.
A game after beating the Minnesota Timberwolves by 15, they turned right around and lost by 42. It can't have been a fun time for OKC.
That frustration showed in the third quarter with the Wolves up by 38 points, too.
Thunder defensive star Lu Dort saw a Rudy Gobert screen coming his way while he defended Anthony Edwards.
Rather than make any sort of real effort to get past the screen, Dort just slapped at Gobert. It's as if his whacks would somehow send a message to the big Minnesota center.
🚨 Watch Lou Dort swiping down on Gobert arms. 🚨 Dort has been the dirtiest player this whole playoffs. Watch him 👀 pic.twitter.com/3901o65J6n
— JK (@JustinKress9) May 25, 2025
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It's relatively innocuous, but it's also just a bad play.
There's no reason for the Thunder to give the Timberwolves any kind of added edge here. Oklahoma City still leads the series. It had a bad night, and it needs to maintain its composure.
Dort is a physical defender, but it'd be nice to see him use that physicality for good and not petty conflicts like this.
Gobert, for his part, was smart enough not to reciprocate in any way. The scoreboard already had Minnesota's statement for the night well in hand.
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