Scoggins: Chet Holmgren makes big plays for Thunder against hometown team

Chet Holmgren won three state championships at Target Center as a student at Minnehaha Academy. His performance on that same court Monday night didn’t clinch a title, but it helped the Oklahoma City Thunder get a better view of that destination.

As homecomings go, this one will be hard to top.

Holmgren hit three-pointers. He soared for dunks. He swatted shots. He kept plays alive with hustle plays.

“Just trying to have fingerprints on the game,” he said.

He left more than fingerprints. He stamped his name in capital letters on Game 4 of the Western Conference finals.

The big man from Minneapolis helped the Thunder survive a slugfest, 128-126 over the Timberwolves at Target Center. The Wolves face an elimination game Wednesday in Game 5 in Oklahoma City.

The Thunder would not have seized control of the series without Holmgren’s contributions.

“Chet was a monster,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.

“He’s just a winning player,” league MVP guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. “He was a really good version of himself tonight.”

Minnesota basketball fans have seen that version plenty of times, albeit on a much smaller stage as a prep star. Holmgren earned national player of the year honors as a senior at Minnehaha Academy.

The stakes and attention are obviously higher now. The optics of Holmgren’s versatility remain strikingly similar.

At 7-1 with guard skills, he impacts the game on both ends of the court.

Offensively, he scored 21 points, including two three-pointers. Defensively, he blocked three shots, including one on a Jaden McDaniels layup attempt with 39 seconds left.

He added seven rebounds, one assist and one steal.

Each of his baskets and blocks felt critical to the outcome because this was the first game of the series that was up for grabs from start to finish.

Holmgren had a large group of supporters at both games. A 42-point drubbing in Game 3 was not the script his envisioned for his return.

“Obviously, last game wasn’t how I kind of wanted to show up in my home city with a lot of friends and family watching,” he said. “It was great to be able to bounce back this game and come away with a win, which is the most important thing.”

Holmgren played 33 minutes — 13 more than in Game 3 as the Thunder pivoted to a smaller lineup in the second half. Starting center Isaiah Hartenstein was on the court only five minutes after halftime, leaving Holmgren to handle that responsibility.

“He affects the game at such a high level,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “It’s crazy because he’s out there just running around right now. We rarely call plays for him. He rarely gets anything set for him. He’s just out there playing off feel.”

Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams fill the Batman and Robin roles. Holmgren put an emphasis on improving his three-pointing shooting this season, knowing the defensive attention the two stars generate would create opportunities for him.

“When you have really good players that the other team needs to stop, they’re going to have to help and recover,” he said. “We have to make them pay for that.”

Holmgren noted that “I’m not scared to let it fly,” and he didn’t look scared at any facet in the biggest game of his young career. He returned to a familiar place and looked right at home.