Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Leads Thunder to Victory as Luka Doncic Ejected in Controversial Finish
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander delivered a dominant performance, scoring 42 points, as the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied to defeat the Los Angeles Lakers 136-120 in a heated matchup that saw Luka Doncic controversially ejected in the fourth quarter.
Just two days after suffering a 27-point loss to the Lakers, the top-ranked Thunder exacted their revenge on Tuesday, propelled by Gilgeous-Alexander’s 13th 40-point game of the season. Jalen Williams contributed 26 points, while Luguentz Dort added 17 in the decisive victory.
The game took a dramatic turn in the fourth quarter when Doncic, the Lakers’ Slovenian star, received his second technical foul and was ejected from the contest. The incident occurred after Doncic made a one-handed jump shot to give the Lakers a 108-107 lead with 7:40 remaining. Official JT Orr cited verbal abuse from Doncic following the basket as the reason for the ejection.
Doncic protested the decision, claiming he was responding to a courtside fan who had heckled him rather than directing any remarks at the referee. Despite his protests, the ejection stood, visibly unsettling the Lakers and allowing the Thunder to seize control and secure the win.
“It was a great game that, unfortunately, didn’t get the finish that every basketball fan would have wanted due to some decision-making,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said.
LeBron James, who finished with 28 points, expressed confusion over his teammate’s ejection. “I don’t know why the ref took it personally,” James told reporters. “The ref made it about himself, and the game just felt weird after that.”
Doncic maintained that he had not directed any trash talk at Orr. “It had nothing to do with the ref, so I didn’t understand it,” Doncic said. “It was tough, but that’s on me too. I can’t let my team down like that.”
With the loss, the Lakers remain in third place with a 48-31 record. They need to win two of their final three regular-season games to secure the third seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
Image Caption: Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers pleads with officials after being ejected during the fourth quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, US, on April 8, 2025. [Joshua Gateley/Getty Images via AFP]
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