LOS ANGELES — There comes a point in almost every series where one coach realizes he’s beaten, he’s thrown every conventional lineup and attacked every matchup he could, and nothing has worked. So, the coach tries something desperate.
Midway through the third quarter of Game 3, with the game and the season slipping away, Lakers coach JJ Redick went small, playing without a center and playing Adou Thiero against a big Thunder team. It worked for a minute, the Lakers went on a 7-0 run and the home crowd — desperate for something to cheer for — got loud. Just as quickly, Ajay Mitchell settled the Thunder down, they made a couple of 3-pointers, and the Thunder’s lead was back up to double digits.
“Typically, you can poke holes at a team in a playoff series. There’s a good chance they might have, like a temporary solution, or can sort of adjust, maybe a little bit,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “This [Thunder] team — in-game because of their personnel — they just adjust. They need shooting on the floor, great. They need multiple wing defenders on the floor, great. They need two bigs on the floor, great. It’s just, they’re a terrific basketball team.”
Game 3 felt like a replay of Game 2 — the Lakers did a lot of good things in the first half, but the Thunder’s talent and depth won out in the end.
Oklahoma City pulled away for its biggest win of the series, 131-108, and now has a commanding 3-0 series lead. The Thunder have now won seven consecutive playoff games, a franchise record.
Tonight, Oklahoma City became the sixth reigning champ in NBA history to start the playoffs 7-0 or better!
— NBA (@NBA) May 10, 2026
Joining:
'16–17 Cavaliers (10–0)
'00–01 Lakers (11–0)
'92–93 Bulls (7–0)
'88–89 Lakers (11–0)
'49–50 Lakers (7–0)
NBA Playoffs presented by @Google pic.twitter.com/MlRgnfwA0V
Game 4 is Monday night in Los Angeles and the Lakers will try to find something to keep their season alive.
Once again, it was the Thunder depth that was the difference. Jalen Williams, an All-NBA player a season ago, remains out with a hamstring strain, so Mitchell again stepped into a starting role, and this time dropped a team-best 24 points with 10 assists. He was particularly strong in the second half, when Oklahoma City needed him most.
GAME 3 FOR OKC: AJAY MITCHELL'S TAKEOVER 🤯
— NBA (@NBA) May 10, 2026
24 PTS (new postseason career high)
10 AST (new postseason career high)
3 STL (new postseason career high)
Thunder will look to close out the series vs. the Lakers on Monday at 10:30 PM ET on Prime! pic.twitter.com/zmZ2pCrStS
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had another mediocre night by his MVP-level standards, with 23 points on 7-of-20 shooting. Seven Thunder players scored in double digits, including Chet Holmgren scoring 18 points and Cason Wallace hitting four 3-pointers off the bench and scoring 16.
“It’s what makes us dangerous. I think we can throw so many people out there that can contribute, pretty much everybody, and everybody excels in their roles,” said Isaiah Joe, who hit four 3-pointers off the bench. “It’s what gives us the edge. A lot of the times we can go 10, 11, 12, 13 deep, and we can keep people on their toes.”
The first half felt like the first half of Game 2 — Los Angeles was forcing turnovers (nine, for 13 points), draining 3-pointers (11-of-20), had seven offensive rebounds, and got 16 from Rui Hachimura. Despite all that, Los Angeles still led by just two, 59-57, after 24 minutes.
The Thunder came out much more intentional with their offense in the second half: Their first three possessions went right at Deandre Ayton. After that, it was a couple in a row targeting Austin Reaves. The result was the Thunder shooting 6-of-7 and going on a 19-6 run to grab an 11-point lead midway through the third, which was the difference heading into the fourth.
That forced JJ Redick to try something and go small, and it was all over from there.
Rui Hachimura led the Lakers with 21 points, while Luke Kennard added 18 off the bench. The Thunder focused their defense on LeBron James and Austin Reaves, and they combined to score 36 points on 12-of-32 (37.5%) shooting. The Lakers did take 15 more free throws in Game 3 after being mad about the officiating in Game 2. It didn’t matter.
The question now is what can the Lakers do, what might work, to extend their series on Monday?
