Tonight’s game between the Phoenix Suns and the Oklahoma City Thunder took an unexpected turn when Grayson Allen became the focus of an incident that silenced the crowd at Paycom Center. Known for his steady demeanor, the guard found himself at the center of a heated exchange that ultimately resulted in his ejection following an official review.

The replay made everything clearer. During a defensive possession, Allen went straight at Chet Holmgren, looking to run through a screen. Instead of avoiding it, he threw his body into the center, elbowing him in the face. As Holmgren crashed to the floor and whistles blew, both teams quickly approached the situation, creating immediate tension on the court.

Emotions ran high. When Jalen Williams approached to stand up for his teammate, Allen reacted dismissively, causing Williams to shove him, forcing teammates and officials to intervene. The referees convened, reviewed the sequence, and quickly delivered their decision: Allen was ejected from the game, leaving both teams on edge as play resumed.

Official James Williams explained that there was, “impact, windup and follow through” from Allen, that led to an upgrade from a flagrant 1 to a 2 instead.

Before his exit, Allen had been one of the primary offensive options for the starters, finishing with 10 points, four assists, one rebound and one steal across 22 minutes. During his ejection in the third, the Suns were down by nearly 40 points to the defending champions, who completely ran over their opponents.

Allen has a reputation of hard, if not excessive, physicality over his career, stretching back to his time at Duke University. The sharpshooter developed a reputation for tripping opposing players, and was even stripped of his captaincy following one such incident.

Back in 2022, he lunged at then Chicago Bulls guard Alex Caruso’s arms, flinging him down the court and receiving a flagrant 2 foul. Caruso ended up fracturing his wrist and missed nearly two months due to the injury.

OKC Thunder Keep Rolling as Phoenix Suns Collapse in Historic Blowout

The Oklahoma City Thunder didn’t just advance, but sent a message to the rest of the Cup participants. Their 16th straight regular season win doubled as a record, tying the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors for the best 25-game start in NBA history. Unlike the two teams’ tight 28th November matchup, tonight’s game was over by halftime.

The avalanche began in the second quarter. Lu Dort, coming off a three-game absence, drilled a high-arcing three to begin a 20-6 run, then buried two more to close the half as the Thunder hit six long-range shots in the final four minutes. From there, it was all downhill for the Phoenix Suns.

The Thunder shot nearly 60% from the field, connected on 22 threes, and turned 21 Suns turnovers in a staggering 34 points. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren logged a combined 52 points, with 12 Thunder players hitting at least one triple.

Top Stories

A’ja Wilson Issues Strong Statement on Caitlin Clark’s Meteoric WNBA Rise

Respect Pours In for Caitlin Clark After Latest Offseason Announcement

Reggie Miller’s Blockbuster Giannis Antetokounmpo Trade Sees $243.3M Knicks Stars Join Bucks

Paige Bueckers Shakes Hands With Chris Paul for Equity Deal in $300,000 Company

A’ja Wilson Announces Personal Decision With Bam Adebayo Amid Major Feat

For the Suns, this was a meltdown marked by the wrong kind of record. They mustered a season-low 89 points, watching a third-quarter scoring drought stretching almost four minutes, with Grayson Allen ejected as frustration boiled over. In the end, the scoreboard read 138-89, the Suns’ worst loss in finals history, and the Thunder look like the NBA Cup favorite heading into Vegas.