For many groups, the win the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder earned over the New York Knicks on Friday can be the signature victory over their season. With out star middle Chet Holmgren and key defender Alex Caruso, the Thunder held the Knicks, the NBA’s No. 3 offense, to only 41 second-half factors to beat a 14-point deficit and win 117-107. Once more, to a traditional crew, this could be a season-defining victory, the kind gamers and coaches speak about within the playoffs as a turning level to their season. For the Thunder, although? It was apparently simply an appetizer.
On Sunday, they ordered the primary course and took a step up the offensive leaderboard by dealing with the No. 2-ranked Boston Celtics, who additionally occur to be the defending NBA champions. Identical to the Knicks, the Celtics held a double-digit lead, theirs by 13 factors, and identical to the Knicks, they performed the sport with a wholesome beginning lineup whereas the Thunder had been nonetheless with out Holmgren and Caruso. However but once more, the Thunder overcame the deficit, and this time, they did so in much more convincing trend. The large, unhealthy Celtics, who had probably the most environment friendly offense in NBA historical past a season in the past en path to a traditionally dominant 64-win season, scored solely 27 whole factors within the second half because the Thunder stormed again for the victory.
The sport featured all the typical Thunder prospers. They compelled 16 turnovers on a Celtics crew that turns the ball over lower than any crew apart from the Thunder themselves. Mark Daigneault swung the sport with a key second-half adjustment, placing Lu Dort on Jaylen Brown, who scored 21 factors within the first half and none within the second. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added to his burgeoning MVP case with 33 factors, 11 rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks. They even had a standout reserve outshine your complete opposing bench: Aaron Wiggins scored 15 factors, outdoing Boston’s bench whole of 13 on his personal. It is the second straight sport wherein he is carried out so, as he additionally lapped New York’s bench on Friday.
The victory was Oklahoma Metropolis’s fifteenth straight, assuming you do not rely the NBA Cup closing towards the Milwaukee Bucks because the league doesn’t, an applicable quantity primarily based on what’s coming subsequent. The Thunder took out the No. 3 offense within the NBA on Friday. They beat No. 2 on Sunday. On Wednesday, they face the No. 1 offense and general crew within the NBA by report, the Cleveland Cavaliers. Earlier than Sunday’s Thunder win, the Cavaliers owned the longest successful streak of this season at 15. Now the 2 are tied.
However given how effectively each have performed this season, Wednesday’s showdown holds far larger which means by way of the standings themselves. Cleveland is 30-4 as of this writing, giving the Cavaliers a half-game lead over the 30-5 Thunder for the most effective report within the NBA. Whoever wins on Wednesday takes an necessary step in the direction of home-court benefit in a attainable NBA Finals matchup, and whereas the Cavaliers is probably not driving fairly as lengthy a streak because the Thunder, one may argue the one they’re presently on is simply as spectacular. Cleveland has 9 straight victories as of this writing, however all 9 of them have come by double digits. The Thunder have 4 single-digit wins on this streak, which is hardly a mark towards them, but it surely goes to point out simply how effectively Cleveland has performed throughout this Thunder run.
By all indications, these should not solely two championship-caliber groups, however two traditionally dominant regular-season outfits. Final yr’s Celtics had the fourth-best web ranking in league historical past on the time at plus-11.6. In accordance with StatMuse, each the Cavaliers (plus-11.8) and Thunder (plus-12.1) are forward of them at this second. Friday was a attainable Finals preview. Sunday, in keeping with Vegas, was the likeliest. However Wednesday will give us our first glimpse at how the 2 greatest statistical groups of the 2024-25 season to this point match up face to face. In the event that they maintain taking part in in addition to they’re proper now, there’s a cheap probability we see them duke it out once more in June.
