OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Jalen Williams scored 21 points, Chet Holmgren had 12 points and 17 rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder withstood a poor shooting night from Shai-Gilgeous-Alexander in their home opener to beat the Denver Nuggets 96-84 on Thursday.

Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 32 points in a convincing win over San Antonio on Tuesday night, finished with 17 points on 6-of-19 shooting against Denver. He failed to score 20 points for the first time in 141 games.

The league’s two-time reigning MVP missed all seven shots he took in the first 24 minutes as the Thunder trailed by as many as nine points. A pair of free throws kept him from going scoreless in a half for the first time since his rookie year with the Clippers in 2019.

It marked just the fourth time in 450 games with the Thunder he’s gone without a field goal in a half. Gilgeous-Alexander scored the first basket of the third quarter to pull Oklahoma City to 48-46.

Aaron Gordon scored 20 points and Nikola Jokic and DeMar DeRozan added 13 apiece for Denver, which was playing its first game.

Thunder overcome SGA's shooting woes to beat Nuggets 96-84 in home opener | iNFOnews.ca — Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gestures after making a basket during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

A layup by Mitchell gave the Thunder a 64-62 lead — their first since 3-0 — and 3-pointers by Alex Caruso and Alexander extended it to 70-64 after three quarters. Oklahoma City extended the advantage to 93-76 on a 3 by Gilgeous-Alexander to give him 17 points with 1:44 left. He then asked to be taken out during a timeout and did not return to the game.