- #1 Oklahoma City Thunder (7-0) at #4 Los Angeles Lakers (4-5)
- When: Monday, 11 May 2026 at 9:30pm CST
- Where: crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, CA
- TV: Prime Video
- Playoff Offensive Rating: LAL: 107.7 (12th) / OKC: 127.6 (1st)
- Playoff Defensive Rating: LAL: 112.9 (10th) / OKC: 108.8 (6th)
- Playoff Net Rating: LAL: -5.2 (11th) / OKC: 18.8 (2nd)
- Series Record: OKC leads 3-0
The Tip-Off
The Oklahoma City Thunder are known as a defensive team. That is their bread and butter. It’s what allowed them to win a championship despite shooting just 33.8% on threes last year. The turn this postseason to being an offensive juggernaut has been eye-opening. They are third in 3pt percentage this postseason, shooting 38.7% from behind the arc. They are 1st in protecting the ball. They are 2nd in True Shooting percentage and Effective FG percentage. They are first in Offensive Rebound percentage. And the crazy thing is, they are doing this all while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging just 21 points per game in the 2nd round and without Jalen Williams, who has been out with a hamstring injury the past six games. There’s a reason why OKC has won by double digits in all but one of their postseason games this year.
Betting Info, presented by FanDuel
- Line: OKC -11.5
- O/U: 214.5
Injury Report
OKC
- Thomas Sorber – OFS (knee/ACL)
- Jalen Williams – OUT (hamstring)
LAL
- Luka Doncic – OUT (hamstring)
Three Big Things
- Ajay Mitchell – SGA has not been his normal MVP self this series, and it hasn’t even mattered. Why? Because 2nd year guard Ajay Mitchell has emerged as another diamond in the rough find for the Thunder. For the playoffs, Mitchell has been averaging 17.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1 steal on just 1.1 turnovers per game, all while having shooting splits of 44/38/88. Coach Mark Daigneault has entrusted Mitchell as the secondary ball-handler in the starting line-up and Mitchell has paid it off with his play, not just on the offensive end, but also on the defensive end.
- Two halves – The Oklahoma City Thunder are just too talented and too deep of a team for the Lakers. In the last two games, the Lakers have executed an almost perfect game plan in the first halves of those games, carrying a 1-point lead into halftime in Game 2 and a 2-point lead into the half in Game 3. But in the third quarter of each of those games, the Thunder outscored the Lakers by 14 and 13 points, respectively, essentially putting those games away heading into the fourth quarter.
- Take Care of Business – With the other Western Conference series being tied at 2 games apiece, taking care of business tonight will allow OKC to get another week’s worth of rest before heading into what will likely be a cage fight in the conference finals. OKC has looked the fresher team in both of their series and this will likely be the last opportunity to get any kind of extended rest for the rest of the playoffs.