OKLAHOMA CITY — Once Devonte’ Graham was ready to storm off the Paycom Center court Wednesday night, no one was going to stop him.
He ran past his teammates, through the embrace of a New Orleans staffer and into the visiting locker room, where he was doused with ice water and anything else the other Pelicans could find.
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The jubilation in that moment was unlike anything they’d experienced before, because they’d just witnessed Graham do something most of them had never seen: He hit a 61-foot, buzzer-beating game-winner to hand New Orleans a shocking 113-110 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. It was the longest buzzer-beating shot in the NBA in the past 25 years, according to reports.
DEVONTE GRAHAM FROM 65 FEET!!!
HOLY COW!!!!#WBD | @PelicansNBA | @Devonte4Graham pic.twitter.com/uMFNefVKTx
— Bally Sports New Orleans (@BallySportsNO) December 16, 2021
But in the waning moments of Wednesday’s win, the Pelicans didn’t think any late-game heroics would be required.
Coming out of a timeout with less than five seconds remaining and leading, 110-107, Pelicans coach Willie Green instructed his team to immediately foul and force the Thunder to shoot two free throws. That should’ve secured the win, but Oklahoma City guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who ended the night with 33 points, somehow dodged the foul attempt by Pelicans guard Garrett Temple and hoisted a leaning 3-pointer from 30 feet away that hit nothing but net to tie the game.
There was pandemonium in the building. But in a split second, that joy transformed into pain. Graham got the inbounds pass as time expired and tossed up a prayer from beyond half court. It crashed against the backboard and dropped into the basket.
“My first emotion was man, we’re going to overtime,” Brandon Ingram said. “I definitely didn’t want to go overtime. And then when I (saw) the ball, it looked like it had a chance to go in, but I didn’t know if it would, and I just kind of blacked out after that. It was just a hell of a shot.”
Graham, who said postgame he’d secured the ball to give to his family, is no stranger to hitting big shots at the end of games. He drained a 3-pointer against the Utah Jazz on Nov. 26 with one second left on the clock to hand the Pelicans an improbable road victory. But he said Wednesday’s buzzer-beater comes in at No. 1 among all the game-winners he’s ever had.
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“When (Gilgeous-Alexander) hit the shot, I’m just like, ‘Aw man, we ain’t got no timeouts,'” said Graham, who finished with 15 points. “I was about to take the ball out, but then I’m like, ‘No, I’m gonna try to get one up. I told Josh (Hart) to come take it out, and I just let it fly.
“When it went in, I just ran around like a crazy person.”
Green added: “When I saw (the ball) release from Devonte’s hands, I just said, ‘Lord, please.’ And he delivered.”
Green and Graham said the scramble sequence the Pelicans went through at the end of the game was something they’ve worked on in the past for end-of-game situations. After the Gilgeous-Alexander shot went in, the Pelicans point guard and his head coach made eye contact as the chaos went on around them, and Green threw his arms up as if he were signaling a touchdown.
Graham knew that meant Green wanted to run a play called “Vegas,” where the point guard would have three options coming off the inbounds pass. But Graham was the only Pelican actually going through with the play, as his teammates were still in shock after Gilgeous-Alexander’s shot, and his quick thinking was enough to get the look New Orleans needed.
“It’s a gamble. You’re betting on a crazy shot,” Graham said of the play call. “You’re putting all your chips in and hoisting one up.”
He added: “I actually got a text from one of my buddies. He was like, ‘You’ve been practicing that shot your whole life.’ You’re just in the gym, playing around. When I was at Kansas, I used to shoot half-court shots every game, every practice, you know, trick shots and stuff like that. For me, it was just playing around. You never know, you might get in that situation one day, just like today, and it ends up paying out for you.”
Graham may have hit the biggest shot of the night, but Ingram — who finished with 34 points, eight rebounds and four assists — may have made the biggest statement of the night.
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Coming into Wednesday, Ingram was shooting 1 of 15 from the field when his team was within five points with less than five minutes remaining in games. His struggles in late-game situations have been notorious among Pelicans fans during his three-year tenure in New Orleans, and he’s developed a reputation for rushing shots or forcing contested looks at the end of games because he desperately wants to prove he can be the closer for this team. But he was masterful in the way he put his team in position to close out the Thunder on Wednesday.
He took his time and got to his spots without forcing the issue. Ingram scored 11 points in the final five minutes of the win, making 4 of 5 from the field and 3 of 4 at the free-throw line.
He even nailed a fadeaway jumper with eight seconds left over Thunder forward Darius Bazley that looked like it could’ve been a dagger.
Ingram’s performance Wednesday was a continuation of what he’s done over the past few weeks as he’s started to regain his All-Star form of a few years ago. Over his past 11 games, the Pelicans star is averaging 25.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists while shooting 48.4 percent from the field. His play has pushed the Pelicans to a 6-5 record over their past 11 after they started the season 3-16.
“I just saw him get into a groove. Calling plays out and dicing guys up,” Green said. “I think he’s just putting the league on notice of how good he really is. He works at it. Every day, he works at it; he works with his teammates, and we can see it. His play on the floor has been unbelievable.”
Ingram’s struggles to close games out are a big reason why Wednesday’s buzzer-beater was just New Orleans’ second win in nine tries in a “clutch” game this season. Both of those wins came as a result of Graham hitting a heroic shot in the final seconds.
But as this youthful Pelicans squad learns about itself and how to win without the face of the franchise, Zion Williamson, Wednesday’s victory can serve as a much-needed confidence booster. New Orleans is still holding out hope for a hot streak that’ll put it back into the thick of the Play-In Tournament race. But to make that happen, the Pelicans have to show a better understanding of how to execute in late-game situations and come away with wins.
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Even though Wednesday’s fourth-quarter execution was far from perfect, it was a decent place for them to start as they attempt to build on the improvement they’ve seen over the past few weeks.
“Every win is big for us. We’ve got a good group of guys who play hard. We put ourselves in a position to win most games. We’re still trying to figure things out because we’re young,” Graham said. “We continue to fight. We’ve got a good group of guys, and we’re going to keep getting better.”
(Photo: Alonzo Adams / USA Today Sports)
