Miami, FL
Three Takeaways from the OKC Thunder’s Summer League Loss to the Miami Heat
On Monday night, the Oklahoma City Thunder were defeated by the Miami Heat 102-73 in the Las Vegas Summer League.
The loss puts OKC at 0-2 in Las Vegas after a solid showing in Salt Lake City’s Summer League event earlier this month.
Despite being trounced by the Heat, the Thunder had multiple young players perform well in Monday’s contest.
Here are three takeaways from Oklahoma City’s most recent Summer League matchup.
For the second consecutive game, rookie guards Ajay Mitchell and Dillon Jones were both bright spots for OKC.
In 24 minutes, Mitchell was the Thunder’s leading scorer, tallying 21 points, five assists, two rebounds, one block and one steal while shooting 8-of-14 from the field. The second round draft pick also went 1-for-1 from 3-point range.
Throughout his time in Salt Lake City and Las Vegas this month, Mitchell has performed well for the Thunder, giving himself an opportunity to be one of the OKC Blue’s top players in the upcoming season. Mitchell will play on a two-way contract and could even earn a few minutes of NBA action this year if he continues to shoot the ball well from the perimeter, control the game as a lead guard and hustle on defense.
While Mitchell’s size prevents him from being an elite defender, the UC Santa Barbara product has been able to make plays and force turnovers so far in the Summer League by playing with constant effort.
Jones has also been one of the Thunder’s top players this summer.
While the Weber State product wasn’t as efficient on Monday night, he still finished with 11 points, six rebounds, three assists and one steal while shooting 4-of-14 from the field and 0-of-6 from beyond the arc.
Even though Jones didn’t have his best performance, he still showcased the versatility that made the first round pick so appealing to Sam Presti.
Aside from Mitchell and Jones, Adam Flagler was one of Oklahoma City’s only other standouts against the Heat.
The second-year guard notched 20 points, three rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes of action, shooting 7-of-16 from the field and 4-of-11 from beyond the arc. Despite just one professional season, Flagler is clearly the veteran of the Thunder’s Summer League team and has played with good command of the game.
After spending the majority of last year with the OKC Blue, Flagler could have a shot at filling OKC’s final roster spot if he continues to play well.
Outside of Mitchell, Jones and Flagler, the rest of Oklahoma City’s roster has struggled in Las Vegas.
Players like Keyontae Johnson, Kylor Kelley, Hunter Maldonado, Cormac Ryan, KJ Williams and Jaden Shackelford all played more than 15 minutes against the Heat on Monday, but still were unable to make big contributions.
Johnson, Maldonado, Williams and Shackelford all spent last year with the Blue, and could return to the Thunder’s G League affiliate for the 2024-25 season.
Want to join the discussion? Like Inside the Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.
Should the CFP committee rethink the playoff schedule format?
Extended breaks and logistical challenges have reopened questions about whether the College Football Playoff committee should adjust the playoff schedule format.
Mississippi football’s Nick Cull avoided an ejection during the College Football Playoff Fiesta Bowl semifinal on Thursday, Jan. 8.
As Malachi Toney reeled in a catch from Carson Beck at the Miami 49 in the first quarter, he was hit by Cull in a helmet-to-helmet collision. Right away, the officials flagged Cull for targeting, with both Toney and Cull staying down on the field with an injury.
After officials reviewed the play, the call on the field was overturned, as the officials determined that Cull did not launch and the collision seemed to be incidental. Replay assistant Matt Austin concurred with the call on the field.
The play had a major impact on the game as well. If the call had been upheld, Miami would have had the ball at the Ole Miss 34-yard line with a chance to expand its 3-0 lead. However, a few plays later, the Hurricanes were forced to punt from the 49-yard line.
On the first play of the second quarter, Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacey scored on a 73-yard run to give the Rebels a 7-3 lead.
Because he was not called for targeting, Cull was not ejected from the game, which means Ole Miss will have him for the remainder of the game, if he can clear the concussion protocol. He was in the tent following the play.
Cull has 15 total tackles and three pass deflections this season for the Rebels.
Meanwhile, Toney went to the medical tent briefly for the Hurricanes, but returned to the game.
A crash involving an unmarked Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office vehicle was reported in Northwest Miami-Dade on Thursday morning, and the morning commute was impacted as a result.
Few details have been released, but the crash was reported in the area of Northwest 79th street and Interstate 95.
Video from the scene showed that the vehicles had heavy damage.
The sheriff’s office said the crash also involved a civilian vehicle, and no injuries were reported.
No other information was released.
The Minnesota Timberwolves announced that guard Anthony Edwards is now available to play in Tuesday night’s game against the Miami Heat after originally being listed as questionable with right foot injury maintenance.
Here’s the rest of the injury report and game preview:
INJURY REPORT
HEAT
Tyler Herro: Available – Toe
Jaime Jaquez Jr.: Out – Ankle
Nikola Jovic: Available – Groin
Terry Rozier: Out – Not with team
TIMBERWOLVES
Anthony Edwards: Available – Foot
Terrence Shannon Jr.: Out – Foot
Joan Beringer: Out – G League
Game date, time and location: Tuesday, Jan. 6, 8:00 p.m. EST, Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
TV: TV: Peacock,
Radio: 104.3 FM (Miami/Ft. Lauderdale), ESPN 106.3 FM, (West Palm Beach), FOX Sports Radio 105.9 FM (Ft. Myers/Naples), 1450 AM (Suart), 97.7 FM (Florida Keys), WAQI 710 AM (Spanish-language broadcast, South Florida) 100.3 FM (Minnesota)
VITALS: The Miami Heat (20-16) and Minnesota Timberwolves (23-13) meet for the second and final regular season matchup after just facing off three days ago with Minnesota recording a, 125-115, win in Miami on January 3. The teams split the series, 1-1, last season with each squad winning on the road. The Heat are 36-35 all-time versus Minnesota during the regular season,
including 19-16 in home games and 17-19 in road games.
PROJECTED STARTERS
HEAT
G Davion Mitchell
G Tyler Herro
C Bam Adebayo
F Norman Powell
F Andrew Wiggins
TIMBERWOLVES
G Donte DiVincenzo
G Anthony Edwards
C Rudy Gobert
F Jaden McDaniels
F Julius Randle
Spread: Heat +5.5 (-112), Timberwolves -5.5 (-108)
Moneyline: Heat +166, Timberwolves -198
Total points scored: 239.5 (over -106, under -114)
QUOTABLE
Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra on the forced turnovers: “That is and has to be our identity. We have to play with a recklessness and activity level that exceeds our opponent, and thats not to put down our talent level or anything like that, it’s more about we look different when we’re flying around and making plays and making it tough for the opponent.”
For more Miami Heat information and conversation, check out Off The Floor.
Alexander Toledo is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI and producer/co-host of the Five on the Floor podcast, covering the Heat and NBA. He can be reached at Twitter: @tropicalblanket
Republican senators hit border, touting tougher security and tax cuts, in 2026 kickoff
Naked woman allegedly assaults deputy while intoxicated, claims she was ‘trying to be a mermaid’
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani set to earn nearly $260K, about 80% more than his prior salary
Debating Mike McDaniel’s fit for Detroit Lions OC job
San Francisco District Attorney speaks on city’s crime drop
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Video: ‘It Didn’t Have to Happen This Way:’ U.Va. Faculty Call for Review of Police Response to Protests
Trump plans to meet with Venezuela opposition leader Maria Corina Machado next week
Trump says meeting Iran’s ‘Crown Prince’ Pahlavi would not be appropriate
Federal immigration agents shoot 2 people in Portland, Oregon, police say
“This is the Berlin Wall moment in Iran”: Masih Alinejad on the nationwide protests
Video: What Trump Told Us About the ICE Shooting
-
Detroit, MI6 days ago2 hospitalized after shooting on Lodge Freeway in Detroit
-
Technology3 days agoPower bank feature creep is out of control
-
Dallas, TX4 days agoDefensive coordinator candidates who could improve Cowboys’ brutal secondary in 2026
-
Health5 days agoViral New Year reset routine is helping people adopt healthier habits
-
Nebraska2 days agoOregon State LB transfer Dexter Foster commits to Nebraska
-
Iowa3 days agoPat McAfee praises Audi Crooks, plays hype song for Iowa State star
-
Nebraska3 days agoNebraska-based pizza chain Godfather’s Pizza is set to open a new location in Queen Creek
-
Entertainment2 days agoSpotify digs in on podcasts with new Hollywood studios