Champion Thunder hold off tenacious
Lakers 115-110 in Game 4 for another playoff series sweep
[May 12, 2026]
By GREG BEACHAM
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points, Chet
Holmgren made a tiebreaking dunk with 32.8 seconds to play, and the
Oklahoma City Thunder swept the Los Angeles Lakers out of the second
round of the NBA playoffs with a 115-110 victory in Game 4 on Monday
night.
Ajay Mitchell scored 10 of his 28 points in the frantic final period
as the Thunder overcame the Lakers' tenacious effort and improved to
8-0 in the playoffs with their toughest victory of the postseason.
“We've done our job so far, that's all it really means,” Gilgeous-Alexander
said. “We've gone out there, we've executed, we've played at a high
level and we've been able to win eight tough games against really
good opponents. That's all it means. Nothing is guaranteed.”
LeBron James had 24 points and 14 rebounds in the final game of the
unprecedented 23rd season for the top scorer in NBA history, but he
missed a driving bank shot with 20 seconds left that would have put
the Lakers ahead.
The 41-year-old James has repeatedly said he hasn’t decided whether
to play next season, so there was no ceremony or momentousness
around this game. Instead, the Lakers desperately tried to extend
their year, only to lose to Oklahoma City for the eighth time this
season.
“I don't know what the future holds for me, obviously, as it stands
right now, tonight,” James said. “I've got a lot of time. I'll go
back and recalibrate with my family and talk with them, and when the
time goes, obviously you guys will know what I decide to do.”
Austin Reaves scored 27 points before missing a tying 3-point
attempt with eight seconds left for the Lakers, who advanced one
round farther than almost anybody expected after losing NBA scoring
champion Luka Doncic and Reaves to significant injuries a month ago.
Los Angeles still lost six of its final seven playoff games and fell
well short of the conference finals for the third straight season.
“I didn't want our season to end,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “I
wanted to keep this thing going. I enjoyed every bit of this year.”
Oklahoma City faced its first fourth-quarter deficits of the entire
playoffs in Game 4 as the Lakers repeatedly refused to fold. The
Thunder still got it done, and they've earned at least the rest of
the week off before they open the conference finals against the
winner of San Antonio’s second-round series with Minnesota. The
Spurs and Timberwolves are even heading to Game 5 on Tuesday night.
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Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso, celebrates after scoring as
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James stands behind during the
first half of Game 4 in a second-round NBA basketball playoffs
series Monday, May 11, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J.
Terrill)
“They won more of the minutes tonight than we did,
and that hadn’t been the case (earlier in the series),” Oklahoma
City coach Mark Daigneault said. “They outplayed us for stretches.
They’re a really good team with prideful players. We did not expect
them to give us an unearned win, and we went out and earned it.”
Oklahoma City went 8-0 against the Lakers this season, winning all
four regular-season matchups as well — but this one was the
toughest. The Lakers took the lead and kept it close down the
stretch with big buckets from Reaves and Rui Hachimura, who scored
nine of his 25 points in the fourth quarter.
Holmgren’s dunk with 2:03 left put the Thunder up 109-103, but
Hachimura coolly converted a four-point play. Marcus Smart then
drove the lane and hit a layup while being fouled in the final
minute, converting a three-point play for a 110-109 Lakers lead.
But Holmgren got the ball inside and triple-pumped for a dunk with
32.8 seconds left, and James missed on his drive. After Gilgeous-Alexander
hit two free throws, Reaves missed again, and the Thunder hung on to
secure their sixth berth in the Western Conference finals in the
last 16 seasons.
The Thunder won the first two games of the series at home by 18
points apiece, and they routed the Lakers 131-108 in Game 3.
Doncic missed the final 15 games of the Lakers’ season after
incurring a grade 2 hamstring strain on April 2 in Oklahoma City,
and he watched the season finale on the bench in a black sweatsuit.
The Slovenian superstar apparently didn’t get close to returning
from the injury, which often requires two months of recovery.
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