Top Ad
I DIG Radio
www.idigradio.com
Listen live to the best music from around the world!
I DIG Style
www.idigstyle.com
Learn about the latest fashion styles and more...

Pels' Graham sinks OKC with 61-footer at buzzer

Written by 
Published in Basketball
Wednesday, 15 December 2021 22:50

As Devonte' Graham sat in the New Orleans Pelicans' locker room after Wednesday night's game, an Oklahoma City Thunder staffer walked in with a gift: the game ball from Graham's wild buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

"One of the guys from the Thunder walked in with the ball and said, 'This is my Christmas present to you,'" a smiling Graham recalled. "I guessed they figured out which one it was. I appreciate them for that."

Graham hit a 61-foot shot as time expired to lift the Pelicans to a wild 113-110 win over the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

"When I saw it released from Devonte's hands, I just said, 'Lord, please.' And he delivered," Pelicans coach Willie Green said. "It was a crazy ending to an up-and-down game. Both teams fought and battled. I'm glad that we're on the winning side of it. Great way to end a road trip."

Graham's shot was the longest game-winning buzzer-beater in the past 25 years, according to ESPN Stats and Information research, besting a 50-footer by Tyreke Evans for Memphis in 2010.

Graham's winning shot came as Thunder fans were cheering a crazy game-tying shot by one of their own just seconds earlier.

With 1.4 seconds left, the Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander nailed a 30-footer to tie the score. Some Pelicans players dropped their heads, assuming the game was headed to overtime, but Graham made eye contact with Green and saw the play call.

"It's called Vegas," Graham said. "It's three different options to it. Thankfully, we hit the right option."

Graham said initially he was just going to take the ball out and quickly try to dish it to someone for a desperation shot because he knew the Pelicans didn't have any timeouts, figuring they were going to play for overtime. But then he saw Green. That's when he flipped the ball to Josh Hart to have him inbound the ball to him and run a play properly.

Graham caught the inbounds pass on the run, took one dribble and let the ball go. As it banked in, he ran around the court celebrating with teammates before quickly sprinting to the locker room.

Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, who scored 12 points in the fourth quarter to keep the game close, set a pseudo screen for Graham on the play. Mostly because he was still in disbelief at Gilgeous-Alexander's 30-footer.

"Well, personally, I was still shell-shocked after Shai hit his 3-pointer," Ingram said. "But Devonte' stayed locked in. Josh Hart stayed locked in. We do have a play at the end of the game where we do ... exactly what he did. He just made a hell of a shot."

According to Second Spectrum, Gilgeous-Alexander's shot had a 14.1% chance of going in. Meanwhile, Graham's shot had just a 3.5% chance. The combined chance for both shots to go in was 0.5%.

Also, according to ESPN Stats and Information, it was the first game in the past 25 years to feature multiple game-tying or go-ahead shots from 30-plus feet inside the final five seconds of the game.

It's the second time this season Graham has hit a big shot for New Orleans in the final seconds. Against Utah on Nov. 26, Graham hit a 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left to give the Pelicans to a 98-97 win over the Jazz.

Against the Thunder, the Pelicans weren't trying to be in a position to need a game-winner. As Oklahoma City inbounded the ball with 4.5 seconds to go and the Pelicans leading 110-107, the plan was for whoever was closest to the Thunder player with the ball to take the foul. Green said they even told officials to look for the foul before a shot attempt went up.

So when Garrett Temple saw Gilgeous-Alexander catch the ball 35 feet away from the hoop, he went for the foul, but it wasn't granted. Temple then pulled back his hands to avoid a potential four-point play as the shot went through the hoop.

Luckily for New Orleans, Graham was on top of things after that.

"The moment the ball went in, Devonte' looked at me," Green said. "I kind of put up a touchdown sign and he knew what that meant. It was a crazy shot. I'm just glad it went in. Our guys executed pretty decent down the stretch. We have room for improvement, but I'm proud of what we did tonight."

Read 237 times

Soccer

FIFA donates $50m for Qatar World Cup legacy

FIFA donates $50m for Qatar World Cup legacy

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsFIFA launched a $50 million legacy fund for social programmes on We...

Guardiola sorry for self-harm remark after draw

Guardiola sorry for self-harm remark after draw

EmailPrintManchester City boss Pep Guardiola has apologised for suggesting he wanted to hurt himself...

Guardiola's new Man City deal means nothing if stars don't sign extensions, too

Guardiola's new Man City deal means nothing if stars don't sign extensions, too

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsManchester City did the easy part by having manager Pep Guardiola s...

2026 FIFA


2028 LOS ANGELES OLYMPIC

UEFA

2024 PARIS OLYMPIC


Basketball

KD, Beal return as Suns' big 3 leads rout of Lakers

KD, Beal return as Suns' big 3 leads rout of Lakers

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsPHOENIX -- Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant each scored 23 points and...

Giannis out vs. Heat due to pregame knee issue

Giannis out vs. Heat due to pregame knee issue

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsMIAMI -- Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is out for Tues...

Baseball

Champion Dodgers adding Snell, sources say

Champion Dodgers adding Snell, sources say

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsFree agent left-hander Blake Snell and the Los Angeles Dodgers have...

Dodgers split $46M from record MLB playoff pool

Dodgers split $46M from record MLB playoff pool

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsNEW YORK -- A full postseason share for the World Series champion L...

Sports Leagues

  • FIFA

    Fédération Internationale de Football Association
  • NBA

    National Basketball Association
  • ATP

    Association of Tennis Professionals
  • MLB

    Major League Baseball
  • ITTF

    International Table Tennis Federation
  • NFL

    Nactional Football Leagues
  • FISB

    Federation Internationale de Speedball

About Us

I Dig® is a leading global brand that makes it more enjoyable to surf the internet, conduct transactions and access, share, and create information.  Today I Dig® attracts millions of users every month.r

 

Phone: (800) 737. 6040
Fax: (800) 825 5558
Website: www.idig.com
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Affiliated