The Thunder led the Timberwolves, 19-14, coming out of a Minnesota timeout in the first quarter of Monday's game. Oklahoma City rookie Théo Maledon, a 19-year-old second-rounder from France, owner of a modest 8.1 points per game scoring average and a gruesome 8.0 PER, had hit a three-pointer just before the timeout, and had already assisted on three other buckets. And here he was again, darting onto a sloppy inbound pass in the backcourt for the steal. Here he was, cruising toward the hoop for an uncontested bucket! Here he was, making good shit happen, off to a terrific start in the 37th game of his heretofore inauspicious NBA career—
In case you're not inclined toward watching horror movies, that's poor Maledon, within a span of roughly 20 seconds:
- Bricking a point-blank layup with no other players within 10 feet of him and no upright opposing players any closer than half-court;
- Rebounding his own miss as Minnesota's Ricky Rubio coasts past;
- Bricking an uncontested two-handed follow-up dunk attempt;
- And then, immediately after the ensuing missed shot by the Timberwolves, dribbling into four Minnesota defenders in transition, losing the ball, and falling on his face.
This poor doofus. Lieutenant Frank Drebin is going to drop an anvil on his balls next. Caption this video "American Society, 2021" and display it in the Hirshhorn.
