- Phoenix Suns (12-7, 6th in the West) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (18-1, 1st in the West)
- When: Friday, 28 November 2025 at 8:30pm CST
- Where: Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
- Offensive Rating: PHX: 115.8 (12th) / OKC: 119.3 (4th)
- Defensive Rating: PHX: 112.1 (9th) / OKC: 102.9 (1st)
- Net Rating: PHX: 3.7 (13th) / OKC: 16.4 (1st)
The Set-Up
This is what the NBA wanted when it set up groupings to determine who would head into the NBA Cup Tournament. Both the Thunder and Suns come into this game undefeated in Cup play. The winner definitely advances into the tournament, while the loser has to hope that other variables fall into place. It’s the ultimate “you decide your own fate” scenario. For the Thunder, while they may tell you that it’s just another game, the truth is likely that they want to avenge the only thing they didn’t get last season, the Cup championship.
This is the first of four meetings this season between Oklahoma City and Phoenix. The Thunder swept the season series 3-0, with an average margin of victory of 20 points.
Betting Info, presented by FanDuel
- Line: OKC -14.5
- O/U: 223.5
Injury Report
OKC
- Isaiah Hartenstein – OUT (ankle)
- Thomas Sorber – OFS (knee/ACL)
- Nikola Topic – OUT (cancer treatment)
- Aaron Wiggins – OUT (adductor strain)
PHX
- Grayson Allen – OUT (quad)
- Ryan Dunn – OUT (wrist)
- Jalen Green – OUT (hamstring)
- Isaiah Livers – OUT (hip)
Three Big Things
- Dub is back – Jalen Williams, who was a 3rd Team All-NBA and 2nd Team All-Defense player last season, was a key part to the Thunder’s championship run last season. Near the end of the regular season last year, Williams suffered a torn ligament in his right wrist. That he played through (and excelled, at points), is a miracle. But he did and accomplished what he and the team wanted to at the end of the season. With that, came surgery in the offseason. As surgeries usually go, there was some hiccups here and there with surgical hardware and what not. But, now, 20 games into the season, Dub makes his debut for a team that is currently 18-1 and on a torrid pace through the season.
- Possible chemistry issues – The fear, when a team is humming, is to introduce a big component that may disrupt that chemistry that has formed in the first 19 games of the season. Am I worried about this? No, I’m not. Is it a possibility? Of course. But as adaptable as this team is, the inclusion of an All-NBA and All-Defense player likely isn’t going to be something that trips them up. Especially, when everybody on this team understands their role and their location on the hierarchy.
- Strengths and Weaknesses – With Isaiah Hartenstein out, that puts more onus on Chet Holmgren and Jaylin Williams to secure the defensive glass. Phoenix is one of the better offensive rebounding teams in the league and that fuels them being a top-10 team in second chance points. But, Phoenix is a team that turnovers the ball over a ton (16.6 a game, 26th in the league) and their turnover percentage is even worse (29th in the league). Turnovers lead to points off of turnovers, where Phoenix is the 2nd worst team at defending points off turnovers and Oklahoma City city is the best at scoring off of turnovers.