OKC’s backup walks away, hauls in the game-winner in the preseason finale

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Denver Nuggets comfortably led most of the final three quarters of the preseason finale against Oklahoma City Thunder. Head coach Mark Daigneault said the improvement is necessary for the champions before watching Ousmane Dieng and the Thunder, who hadn’t led since the start of the second quarter, grab their first lead of the second half with 1:42 left in the final frame.

A young Thunder team erased a 16-point deficit before the Nuggets tied the game with 13 seconds left. Dieng scored 13 of his 17 points in the final frame, including a game-winning three as the game clock expired in the Thunder’s 94-91 preseason win.

“It was a fast break. The game was tied. We had to shoot,” Dieng said. “With a great defense, I wanted to shoot the first one. So I had to pass and shoot like that. But it was good.”

In a second quarter in which the Nuggets outscored their opponent by 14 points, the Thunder responded in the second half, making key plays down the stretch on both ends of the floor before a stunning 16-0 run in the fourth quarter changed Oklahoma City’s fortunes.

“We were just persistent, which is what you have to do in a 48-minute game,” Daigneault said. “Tonight was a good lesson. It went from 16 to six or four very quickly. You don’t have to hit home runs in a 48-minute game. You just have to play well the next possession and let the power of the combination happen.”

Ousmane Dieng finished 6-of-12 from the floor, including a pair of 3-pointers, four rebounds, one steal and one block in 20 minutes. Dieng, who played in 37 games last season while spending most of the season in the G League with the Thunder, is entering his fourth year.

Thunder All Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 12 points, four rebounds and one steal in the first half, and Chet Holmgren added nine points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block in his preseason debut before Daigneault got all his starters after halftime.

Mark Daigneault says improvement is “necessary” for Thunder

Before The Thunder raise their championship banner in the opener on Tuesday, head coach Marc Daigneault knows the 2025-26 season can’t mirror last season. The Thunder’s championship streak is in the past and if the defending champions plan to repeat, growth is criticalDaigneault said.

“It can come off as arrogant if it’s portrayed the wrong way. We’re winning championships, and if you take that out, it’s like we can still be better,” Daigneault said. “It has a tone that doesn’t feel great, and that’s certainly not where we’re at. Improvement is necessary in our situation because everybody else is getting better. Both rosters, their coaching staff, schemers are getting better, their players are getting better.”

The Thunder will host the Rockets in the opener at the Paicom Center on Tuesday.