Sam Merrill tied the game with a three. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander answered with a stepback. Then Merrill got one more look from the corner, but it didn’t fall.

That’s a tough way to lose after spending most of the night digging out of a hole. It’s also what happens when the guy on the other side has 40 points before taking the biggest shot of the game. Shai finished with 43, and the Cavs had two days to figure out what they want to change.

Now they’ll get another shot at the Thunder at Paycom Center, with tipoff set for 8 p.m. ET. These teams have a habit of turning regular season games into chaos. Cleveland snapped Oklahoma City’s 15-game winning streak in January 2025 in a game with 30 lead changes. Then both teams made the conference finals last spring. Monday brought 23 lead changes of their own.

So, yeah, I’d happily watch two of these in three nights.

Make Oklahoma City Guard the Whole Floor

The number I keep coming back to from Monday is 50–30. That’s how badly Oklahoma City outscored Cleveland in the paint. And they did it with Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, and Cason Wallace all out. Isaiah Hartenstein grabbed 14 rebounds, while rookie Aday Mara chipped in 10 points and nine boards in 20 minutes.

Cleveland had Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. Somehow, Oklahoma City was the team that made you feel their size.

There’s a reason Cleveland kept shooting. Nine third-quarter threes got the Cavs back into the game. Donovan Mitchell finished with 17 points and 11 assists, including the pass that set up Merrill’s tying three. He was already doing the thing I’d want to see more of Wednesday: making Oklahoma City deal with what happens after he beats the first defender. The next step is getting Allen and Mobley involved earlier in those possessions.

We just saw what that can look like. Mobley and Allen combined for 52 points in Saturday’s win over Milwaukee. They took 32 shots that night and 21 on Monday. Milwaukee’s obviously a different opponent, but when James Harden or Mitchell comes off a screen, Cleveland can make Hartenstein choose: step up to the ball or stay with Allen on the roll. Give Mobley a catch in the middle, and he can finish or move the ball to the corner himself. You can still end up with the same Merrill three. The difference is that you’ve made the defense work a whole lot harder to get out there.

What Happens When It’s Close Again?

Shai needed 35 shots to get his 43, which sounds like a pretty good night for the defense until you remember the 11 made free throws and eight assists. Cleveland can send help earlier and make him give up the ball, but somebody still has to rotate. With under two minutes left Monday, Shai found Hartenstein for a floater that put Oklahoma City ahead. Ajay Mitchell hit the next Thunder basket and finished with 20. By the time Shai hit the stepback everybody remembers, his teammates had already done plenty of the closing work.

I still think Cleveland gets their revenge here. The Cavs missed 10 free throws in a five-point loss, and I think they can get more from Mobley and Allen without giving up the looks that helped bring them back. The possession I want to see is a tie game with a minute left and both bigs still involved. If Cleveland wins that way, it’ll tell me the Cavs can keep using the whole offense when it’s tempting to just hand Mitchell the ball and hope.

If Oklahoma City takes both, I’ll come away thinking more about the guys around Shai. Everybody knows what he can do with 33 seconds left. The Thunder are still figuring out who can help get him that chance.

All stats courtesy of NBA.com.

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