Wizards stay close with the class of the Western Conference before wilting in the final quarter of a 123-105 defeat. OKLAHOMA CITY — If the Washington Wizards wanted empirical evidence of what the perfect rebuild can produce, the schedule-makers provided it Monday night in the form of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Missing Bilal Coulibaly, Alex Sarr, and Kyle Kuzma due to injury, the Washington Wizards hung tough against the vastly superior Oklahoma City Thunder before succumbing to a fourth quarter onslaught and losing,

After not playing at home since Dec. 10, the OKC Thunder are finally back in the Sooner State to take on a poor Eastern Conference opponent.

The Thunder (22-5) have won seven in a row sans the NBA Cup finals. They didn't let built-in excuses stop them from sweeping their Florida back-to-back. They won a low-scoring contest against the Miami Heat on Friday. Jalen Williams scored a season-high 33 points.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander tied his career high with 45 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 120-114 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night. Gilgeous-Alexander hit 15 of 22 shots and all 11 free throws in Oklahoma City’s ninth consecutive victory.