Power forward Taj Gibson hasn’t been with the Oklahoma City Thunder for very long, but he’s already hit one ridiculous buzzer-beater in his time with them.
When the Oklahoma City Thunder traded for power forward Taj Gibson from the Chicago Bulls at the NBA trade deadline, they thought they were getting just a great, low-post player.
What the Thunder didn’t know was that Gibson was could throw passes like Aaron Rodgers from three-quarter court. On the road against the Northwest Division rival Portland Trail Blazers, Gibson sank the most ridiculous three-quarter court buzzer-beater at the half.
TAJ! pic.twitter.com/JJfdAJjome
— The Crossover (@TheCrossover) March 3, 2017
Portland tried to inbound the basketball with 2.7 seconds left in the half, Grant Hill to Christian Laettner style. Gibson would gather the deflected pass and then throw a Rodgers-like Hail Mary into the hoop on the other side of the court.
It untied the game, giving Oklahoma City a 60-57 lead into halftime. The heave was certainly fortuitous, but it epitomizes why Oklahoma City traded for Gibson in the first place. He is a gamer, doing whatever it takes to help his team win ball games.
Oklahoma City is in seventh place in the Western Conference. The Thunder have an outside shot at winning 50 games this season. Adding Gibson and Doug McDermott in that trade with the Bulls makes the Thunder a more viable team down the stretch and into the Western Conference Playoffs.
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For a guy that has made his living banging down low on the glass, this play may go down as one of the preeminent highlights of Gibson’s basketball career. What a shot!
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