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Thunder vs. Houston Rockets preview (Game 1 of 82)

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  • Oklahoma City Thunder (0-0) vs. Houston Rockets (0-0)
  • When: Tuesday, 21 October 2025 at 6:30pm CST
  • Where: Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
  • TV: NBC/Peacock

The Set-Up

What do you do when you’ve accomplished the goal you’ve set out to accomplish every year since your existence? Do you rest on your laurels and reminisce about how it felt to reach the mountaintop? Do you become the “y’all remember when” guy? Or do you recognize that to reach the mountaintop again, you have to, as Thunder GM Sam Presti would so eloquently put it, “divorce yourself from the past” and begin anew? The mantra of having a 0-0 mindset while stacking days will be tested this season. Everything this team does this season will be compared to last year. That happens when you bring back every rotational piece that helped you reach your goal. But with that continuity, does complacency creep in? Everyone is saying the right things. Now it’s time to show the right things. Ring night. Banner night. Then the new journey begins.

This is the first of three meetings this season against the Houston Rockets. Last season, the Thunder won the season series 3-2. They faced each other in the NBA Cup semifinals, where the Thunder emerged victorious on their way to the NBA Cup finals.

Betting Info (brought to you by FanDuel)

  • Line: OKC -7
  • O/U: 228

Injury Report

OKC

  • Isaiah Joe – OUT (knee)
  • Thomas Sorber – OUT (knee)
  • Nikola Topic – OUT (testicular surgery)
  • Jalen Williams – OUT (wrist)
  • Kenrich Williams – OUT (knee)

HOU

  • Isaiah Crawford – Questionable (ankle)
  • Dorian Finney-Smith – OUT (ankle)
  • Jae’Sean Tate – OUT (ankle)
  • Fred VanVleet – OUT (knee)

Three Big Things

  1. Jumbo Line-up – The Rockets will feature a starting line-up where the shortest player out there will be 6’7″. (Don’t do the stupid hand shakey thing…and you just did it) If this was two seasons ago, it might be a little worrisome for the Thunder. But with Isaiah Hartenstein, Chet Holmgren, and Jaylin Williams all healthy to begin the season, this shouldn’t worry the Thunder too much. In fact, with the Rockets’ lack of a pure point guard/ball handler, outside of Reed Sheppard, and the lack of spacing, it may actually play into the Thunder’s defensive chaos machine.
  2. Brooks Barnhizer – It’ll be interesting to see if Barnhizer gets any burn in this game. He played in all six preseason games where he averaged 30 minutes, 9.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 2 steals on 44/42/72 shooting splits. The most interesting stat to me is that he averaged 4.2 free throw attempts in those six games. This team loves controlled aggressivity and Barnhizer has that in spades. Last year, as a rookie, Ajay Mitchell averaged 21 minutes per game in the preseason and was a part of the rotation from the start of the season until an injury forced him out of the rotation. With the Thunder being down a couple key rotation pieces due to injury, I could see Barnhizer getting some action early in the season and parlaying that into a role in the rotation.
  3. Oh the irony – Kevin Durant…here in OKC, on ring night. To see Durant looking up onto what used to be his kingdom, only see a banner being raised that he had no part in obtaining. Chef’s kiss. I may disagree with NBA commissioner Adam Silver that the NBA is a highlight only league. But this right here, this is WWE-level script writing. Bravo! Now cue Roundball Rock!

The Source: Presti Quotables

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Back in the 90’s, magazines were all the rage for being in the know for whatever you were consuming. If you loved sports, there was a weekly dose of information called Sports Illustrated. If nature was your thing, National Geographic had you covered. World news…Time. Silly comics…MAD. If you were a music head, you were probably ordering a monthly subscription to Rolling Stones or Vibe. But you were a hip-hop head, your readable rotation probably involved magazines like Word Up!, XXL, and The Source. The latter of those had a section called Hip-Hop Quotables, where the magazine highlighted a specific verse or song that was lyrically chef’s kiss. If you were a rapper at that time, you wanted your verse to be featured on Hip-Hop Quotables.

If you’ve followed the Oklahoma City Thunder any in their 18 years of existence, you know that a Sam Presti press conference is usually good for several quotables. The man is well-versed in many forms of prose and can pull out a quote or lyric from the recesses of his mind. As the Thunder open up their championship-defending campaign, Presti once again blessed us with several quotables in preparation for the 2025-26 NBA season. Here are some from Thursday’s presser:

Shots fired at NBA commissioner Adam Silver for his comments regarding the cost associated with having multiple TV partners across multiple streaming services and his quip that content can be consumed for free on social media because basketball is a “highlight-based sport”. Presti, and in turn, the Thunder, have always prided themselves in being students of the game, and not just consumers of the moment. When you stack days and live a 0-0 mentality, highlights are just plays that happen in the moment.

Chess is often associated with intelligence and experience. How do you attack and then how do you counter. But, as Presti said, that’s assuming everyone is playing with the same players on the board. Chess would make sense if everyone had an MVP candidate on their team or a DPOY candidate that can step out and hit 3’s. But in reality, that isn’t the case. In poker, you are given a set of cards, and from there, you decide what to do. Six years ago, the Thunder saw the deck they had in hand, and decided to pivot (or fold) from that current state. And so began the rebuild. While it was uncomfortable (shitty hands) for a little, eventually the team came up aces with their young players and a championship was the end result. Presti knew when to hold them and when to fold them.

“My whole life is consistent.” Yep, checks out. Presti knows ball.

One of the staples of the Thunder ethos is “no agenda basketball”. Presti said that when describing Cason Wallace’s play when they drafted the guard in 2023. And he repeats that, in other words/phrases, of course, in describing Chet. What I love about “Presti-speak” is that he takes a phrase and then parses out synonyms that basically mean the same thing.

 

 

If you were looking for a theme for this year, it’s “turning the page”. Presti mentioned it  multiple times during the press conference and eludes to the fact that the Thunder can’t rest on the laurels of last season. Continuous improvement was also a theme Presti touched on multiple time during the presser.

Frickin’ bars, man. Stop guarding the past. Build towards the future. If this whole GM thing doesn’t work out for Presti, he’s got a helluva future as an inspirational speaker or life coach.

This is nothing new when it comes to Presti. In every preseason presser, he always stresses the goal is to put yourself in position to go after an opportunity if it presents itself. The Thunder have never been a “title or bust” team. It’s always been about setting yourself up to have the opportunity to compete for championships. To Presti, winning a championship does nothing to change that mindset.

 

These two quotes have to go together. With all the fear being stoked that the 2nd apron will eventually tear this team apart, the reality is that the Thunder are only just now in the beginning of their run, haven’t even dipped their toes into the luxury tax (and likely won’t this season), have their core signed for the next six seasons, and still have a treasure trove of assets. Not only that, but the ownership group has been saving money throughout the rebuild specifically for this moment and more money should be coming, in the form of possible expansion and the new arena. Oh, and the Thunder already have a championship in their coffers before they start getting financially penalized.

If your job has a mission statement, just keep repeating it if you are the boss.

And finally:

Keep smiling, champ. Keep smiling.

 

Jalen Williams sheds the wrist brace

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As shown on Jalen Williams’ Instagram page, the brace that once covered his right wrist is now no longer present. The surgery to repair a torn scapholunate ligament was performed on July 1st, 2025. At the time, the expected re-evaluation period for such a surgery was at least 12 weeks. As of today, we are at 11 weeks, post-surgery. At the time, Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti stated that he expected Williams to be ready for the start of the 2025-26 NBA regular season.

Williams tore the ligament on April 9th, 2025, in a game against the Phoenix Suns. He went on to miss the last two games of the regular season, but played in all the postseason games, as the Thunder made their run to win the championship. As documented in Williams’ post-surgery vlog, he received lidocaine injections in his wrist before each game and before some practices. He also took multiple cortisone shots and developed injection-site callouses in his wrist. He said that during the playoff run, he had to relearn how to shoot, using more of a finger-tip guided shot, instead of his usual wrist-guided shot.

The Thunder start training camp in a couple of weeks and play their first preseason game on October 5th, 2025 against the Charlotte Hornets. Their championship title defense begins on October 21st, 2025 against the Houston Rockets.

 

Thunder @ Indiana Pacers Preview (Game 3 – NBA Finals)

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Where We Currently Stand

  • Game 1 – 111-110 Pacers – Indiana led for 0.3 seconds of the game. Thunder led throughout, but played “not to lose” late in the game which resulted in Indiana mounting a comeback and having the last meaningful possession of the game, which resulted in a go-ahead midrange jumper from Tyrese Haliburton. Series: 1-0 IND
  • Game 2 – 123-107 OKC – Thunder use a 19-2 run in the 2nd quarter to build up a 18-point halftime lead that Indiana could not overcome this time. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was masterful in this game, putting together a 34 point, 8 assist, 5 rebound, 4 steal, and 1 block stat line. Series: Tied 1-1
  • Game 3 – June 11th, 2025 at 7:30pm CST in Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN.
  • Gambler’s Corner
  • Line: OKC -5.5
  • O/U: 227.5

Game 3 Adjustments

1. More Aggressive Haliburton – Tyrese Haliburton is inherently an unselfish player. He would much rather prefer a democratic offensive system, instead of a totalitarian one where he’s the focal point. But that doesn’t mean that he can’t be that guy. In the fourth quarter of Game 2, Haliburton asserted himself a bit more and scored 12 of his 17 points on 5/6 shooting. Another surprising stat is that Haliburton hasn’t attempted a free throw in the Finals yet. While he’ll never be mistaken for a free throw merchant (3 attempts per game during the regular season), his lack of aggressiveness in the Finals has hurt the Pacers. I see that changing in Game 3.

2. Defending SGA – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 34 points on 11-21 shooting and it didn’t even look like he was trying too hard. Whether it was splitting weak double teams or just going at his primary defender (usually his country-mates Andrew Nembhard and Bennedict Mathurin), SGA was in an offensive zone that only great scorers get into. The Thunder scheme was to try to get SGA loose and moving downhill early in the set, sometimes up to 7 feet outside the 3-point line. If Indiana is going to try to play tighter and more physically on SGA, you could see a game where he becomes more of a distributor. But it could also backfire on Indiana and we could see SGA get to the free throw line at Dwayne Wade-levels in this game.

3. The Others – Whether it’s Indiana’s Others or Oklahoma City’s Others, the Others will decide who wins Game 3. Will we see a big Pascal Siakim game? Will Jalen Williams or Chet Holmgren have a defining game in this series? Will Indiana’s shooting get hot playing in front of their home crowd? Can OKC’s bench travel with them to Gainbridge?

4. Game 3’s – This is going to be the immovable object versus the unstoppable force. Oklahoma City has lost their last two Game 3’s and was down by 29 points at one point in Game 3 against Memphis before coming back to win that game. Indiana has lost all three of their Game 3’s in these playoffs by an average of 14.7 points. Something’s got to give in this Game 3.

5. Dominant OKC – While the series is tied 1-1, Oklahoma City has clearly been the better team in this series. They’ve led for 94 of the 96 minutes so far and have been able to mount double-digit leads with ease throughout the series. Now to see if they can continue doing that on the road.

Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Series Preview – NBA Finals

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Schedule

  • Game 1 – June 5th, 2025 @ 7:30pm CST at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK
  • Game 2 – June 8th, 2025 @ 7:00pm CST at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK
  • Game 3 – June 11th, 2025 @ 7:30pm CST at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN
  • Game 4 – June 13th, 2025 @ 7:30pm CST at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN
  • *Game 5 – June 16th, 2025 @ 7:30pm CST at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK
  • *Game 6 – June 19th, 2025 @ 7:30pm CST at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN
  • *Game 7 – June 22nd, 2025 @ 7:00pm CST at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, OK* – * * – If necessary

Quick Stats (Playoffs)

  • Offensive Rating – IND: 117.7 (2nd) / OKC: 115.9 (3rd)
  • Defensive Rating – IND: 113.6 (9th) / OKC: 104.7 (1st)
  • Net Rating – IND: 4.1 (4th) / OKC: 11.2 (2nd)

The Set-Up

Let’s be honest: if you marked this Finals match-up down in October 2024, then your phone number probably either starts with a 405 area code or a 317 area code. I’m sure a lot of people will tell you that an NBA Finals without LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Jayson Tatum, Nikola Jokic, or Steph Curry will be bad for the league. I’m sure they’ll wax poetic about superteams and dynasties of yore. They may even try to convince that these Finals will be the least watched finals ever. But don’t listen to them.

Every crop of superstars has to eventually meet it’s end. That LeBron and Curry have pushed their reigns out so far has been nothing short of impressive. Kudos to them for showing a new crop of stars how to take care of their bodies and push the bounds of longevity. But one era has to finish for another one to begin. And that is what these Finals may be representing. One, not necessarily built by superteams, but by team depth. One, not necessarily focused on the heliocentricity of one player, but on the ability to have five players on the court be 5-tool players. One, where the most important guy in the organization may not be the league MVP, but the league’s Executive of the Year.

Teams are being built differently now, and this may be the first view of how the NBA will look like under the new CBA. And there will be moans and groans about how great things were in the past. But, yet, somehow, someway, the league continues to grow. The social media hits continue to climb. The game crosses more and more boundaries as it continues to battle futbol (no, not football) as a truly global game. Soccer remains king throughout the world, but basketball continues to lie in wait as the prince that was promised. As the NBA landscape changes, these two teams, the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder, are the teams that will usher basketball into this new era. You may be watching the next great dynasty unfold before your eyes.

Regular Season Series

Game 1 – Dec. 26th, 2024 – Thunder win 120-114 in Indianapolis, IN – SGA scores a then career-high 45 points as Lu Dort and the Thunder defense holds Tyrese Haliburton to 4 points on 6 FG attempts. Isaiah Hartenstein pitched in with an 11 point, 13 rebound double-double and Jalen Williams added in 20 points.

Game 2 – Mar. 29th, 2024 – Thunder win 132-111 in Oklahoma City, OK – OKC outscores the Pacers by 20 points combined in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and uses that cushion to cruise to victory. SGA scores 33 points and get big time contributions from Luguentz Dort (22 points on 6/7 shooting from deep) and Isaiah Joe (19 points on 5/7 shooting from deep).

Three Big Things

1. Twins? – These two teams are definitely not identical twins. But they could be classified as fraternal twins with how similar they are. Here are just a few stats that show how similar these two teams are: After January 1st, 2025, the Pacers (33) and Thunder (41) had the most wins in the league during that time. They both have a 12-4 record in the playoffs heading into the Finals. They are No. 2 and 3 in points per game in the playoffs, being separated by only 0.3 of a point. They are No. 1 and 2 in pace in the playoffs. They are 1 and 2 in points off turnovers. They are No. 1 and 3 in fastbreak points. They both get back on defense, being No. 1 and 2 on both Opponent Points off Turnovers and Opponent Fastbreak Points. It’s scary how similar these teams are, statistically.

2. SGA – The biggest difference is that one team boasts the league MVP and the other doesn’t. SGA has been playing some of his best basketball these last few weeks. While he may have started off slow in the first few games of the playoffs, he has picked it up when it has mattered most, scoring 30 or more points in 11 of his last 14 games. Teams have used various schemes to try to stop SGA, but it has been all for naught. In the two regular season games this season, SGA has averaged 39 against Indiana.

3. Living in the Corner – Indiana’s offense in these playoffs has not just been predicated on Haliburton’s floor generalship, but also on the shooters making corner 3’s. Indiana has shot an amazing 46.9% on 9.2 attempts these playoffs. That is up from 40.6% during the regular season. A 16-game sample size is big enough to assume that it can continue for the Pacers in the finals. But if they revert back to their regular season norms, the Pacers could be in trouble.

Thunder @ Denver Nuggets preview (Game 8 of 82)

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OKC Thunder vs Denver Nuggets: Betting Odds, Game Preview, Keys to Game

  • Oklahoma City Thunder (7-0) at Denver Nuggets (4-3)
  • When: Wednesday, 06 November 2024 at 8:00pm CST
  • Where: Ball Arena, Denver, CO
  • Offensive Rating – DEN: 114.5 (7th) / OKC: 110.9 (19th)
  • Defensive Rating – DEN: 113.0 (17th) / OKC: 93.8 (1st)
  • Net Rating – DEN: 1.5 (11th) / OKC: 17.1 (1st)
  • TV: FanDuel Sports Network – Oklahoma

The Set-Up

This is the second meeting of the season between these two division rivals. The Thunder won the first game 102-87 behind an incredible (and as we’ve come to expect) defensive effort. The Thunder have now won four straight meetings against the Nuggets dating back to last season.

Betting Info

  • Line: OKC -7.5
  • O/U: 223.5

Injury Report

OKC

  • Isaiah Hartenstein – OUT (hand)
  • Nikola Topic – OUT (knee)
  • Jaylin Williams – OUT (hamstring)
  • Kenrich Williams – OUT (knee)

DEN

  • Vlatko Cancar – Doubtful (ankle)
  • Aaron Gordon – OUT (calf)
  • DaRon Holmes II – OUT (Achilles)
  • Jamal Murray – OUT (concussion protocol)

Three Big Things

  1. Free Throws – Surprisingly, for a team featuring Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder rank dead last in both free throw attempts and makes. If Oklahoma City is trying to emulate Boston’s style of offense, they are forgetting to allow the threat of 3-point shots set-up their ability to drive to the basket. SGA, usually a staple at the top of the drive per game stat, ranks 4th in drives at 19.4 drives per game. The “free throw merchant” is only averaging 5.7 free throw attempts per game in this early going. Jalen Williams is the next highest on the team at 2.6 FTA per game. While this has yet to be an issue for the team, free throw attempts and scoring were a major part of the Thunder’s game plan last season.
  2. Injured Animal – This game is good in testing the Thunder’s psyche. It’s human nature to look at your successes and wonder why you have to keep working so hard if you are going to succeed regardless. The Thunder find themselves facing an injured Denver squad that is missing two of their main components in Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon and likely looking to play in desperation mode in order to keep up in the ultra-competitive Western Conference. An injured animal is a dangerous one…unless the animal on the opposite side has a dangerous mindset also.
  3. Tired Chet – While Chet may be playing less minutes this season, he is shouldering a lot more of the load, especially as the defensive anchor on the best defense in the league. Add to that the fact that both his back-ups (Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams) are both out with injury, and you start to see why Holmgren is looking tired so early in the season. He has to guard the opposing team’s best big and usually, that involves a large discrepancy in mass and strength. He has held his own, don’t get me wrong. But he hasn’t had a chance to breathe early on in this season.

Let It Rip: Why you’re probably overreacting about Shai’s 3 ball

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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wins Feb. 6 to Feb. 12 Western Conference Player of the Week - Yahoo Sports

We have been blessed as a fanbase to see a superstar blossom right in front of our eyes in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The centerpiece of the Paul George trade, we have watched him go from bench guy, 3rd option, to running the show. And run it, he has.

Over the last four seasons, Shai has led the league in drives per game in three of those four seasons. Shai has boasted the efficiency of a wing player, shooting over 50% from the field and averaging about six free throw attempts per game.

Because of this, the fanbase, and the NBA at large, have associated Shai’s game to three things: driving to the basket, shooting the mid range jumper, and getting to the free throw line. 

And he’s been pretty good at it. Averaging over 30 points per game in each of the past two seasons, Shai is widely considered one of the top 5 player in the world and is on the shortlist for MVP for everyone who has a pulse.

So, going into his 7th season, fresh off back to back All-Star appearances, being named a starter in the All-Star game, and being a back to back 1st Team All-NBA recipient, many people think Shai should just stick with what got him there, and leave well enough alone.

But that’s not Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

He summed this up in 2021, with a banger of a quote.

“I’m not playing this game just to be a good basketball player. I want to be one of the greatest to ever play.”

He is always adding to his game. Whether it was the stepback, catch and shoot 3, off ball defense, playmaking, etc., Shai has gone into the lab every offseason, and every offseason he comes out acting different.

I imagine him stepping into a lab (for some reason this one I’m picturing in my head has automatic sliding doors) normal Shai, but after some time,  when he emerges from the sliding doors, smoke billows out of the room with a green haze in the background, and somewhere, somehow, an organ is playing and angels are singing. Anyways, back to the point.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is a legit MVP candidate - BALLERS.PH

Is it awesome that he is a top 5 player in the world right now? Absolutely. Would it be easy to just continue what he’s doing now? Absolutely. Could he have similar success doing exactly what he has done the past couple of seasons? Absolutely. (Topic: Thunder listeners have drank themselves into a coma with all the absolutely) BUT, Shai doesn’t want what he already has, Shai isn’t ok with the status quo, Shai doesn’t want to just go through the motions and be remembered as just another good player.

He’s on some Ash Ketchum energy. This dude wants to be the very best, like NO ONE ever was.

So yes, he will continue to add to his game, and we have the fruits of those seeds he planted the offseason (IN THE LAB).

He looks engaged and disruptive when he is playing on ball defense.

His playmaking reads are sharper than ever, and he’s making passes we have never seen him make. Live dribble skip passes from one end of the court to the other, one hand dump offs to a cutter, hitting the roller in stride, hitting the shooters in their pockets; consistently.

But one addition to his game that has been met with uproar and outrage by a large (and troubling) portion of the Thunder fan community, is his increased 3 point shooting volume.

First off, it fits Sam Presti’s ethos to a T. Exploration, and experimentation are the reason you see the roster you see today for the Thunder. Presti has tried things, failed at things, and succeeded at things. All in all, he collected data, learned from his mistakes, enforced his correct decisions, and now we have a juggernaut in Oklahoma City.

It’s not different with Shai. Yes, that dude is and has been unguardable, but if he learns how to shoot high volume, off dribble, pull up 3-pointers, he will become unstoppable.

It adds a new weapon to your offense that opponents have to account for. They can’t build a wall in the paint and dare Shai to shoot middy’s over it. Shai can force them to play him close, and then it’s curtains. Play him to close, he’s blowing by you. Sag off on him just enough, and he’s comfortable and confident to pull that 3 in your eye; without having to first simulate the drive and get to his stepback.

That’s the why he should do this, (which I feel should be fairly obvious?), let’s get into the why now.

It’s simple. We are 4 games into the regular season.

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San Antonio Spurs vs. Thunder Preview (Game 4 of 82)

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San Antonio Spurs' Losing Streak Continues in Oklahoma City Thunder Blowout - Sports Illustrated Inside The Spurs, Analysis and More

  • San Antonio Spurs (1-2) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (3-0)
  • When: Wednesday, 30 October 2024 at 8:30pm CST
  • Where: Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
  • Offensive Rating – SAS: 108.1 (24th) / OKC: 109.2 (18th)
  • Defensive Rating – SAS: 114.1 (16th) / OKC: 90.8 (1st)
  • Net Rating – SAS: -6.0 (22nd) / OKC: 18.4 (2nd)
  • TV: ESPN

The Set-Up

I don’t want to over-react, but what the Thunder is doing so far this season is historic. Their defense has been exceptionally great. The fact that it hasn’t really mattered that the offense has been average, at best, and they are still beating teams by an average of 19.3 points is amazing to me. The Thunder’s Guard Dawgs (Lu Dort, Alex Caruso, and Cason Wallace) have caused fits for perimeter players, while Chet Holmgren patrols the paint to the tune of 4 blocks per game (1st in the league) and 13 rebounds per game (3rd in the league). In addition, you have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams ball-hawking the passing lanes. If the Thunder’s offense ever jumps into the Top-10, this team could be looking at being historic for margin of victory also.

This is the first of three meetings this season between these two teams. The Thunder won the season series last year 3-1, with an average margin of victory of 33.3 points.

Betting Info

  • Line: OKC -12.5
  • O/U: 221.5

Injury Report

OKC

  • Isaiah Hartenstein – OUT (hand)
  • Nikola Topic – OUT (knee)
  • Jaylin Williams – OUT (hamstring)
  • Kenrich Williams – OUT (knee)

SAS

  • Tre Jones – OUT (ankle)
  • Devin Vassell – OUT (foot)

Three Big Things

  1. Chet vs. Wemby – One of the budding rivalries in the league. This had Christmas Day game written all over it. You dropped the ball on that one, Silver. Luckily, all three of the meetings this year are nationally televised games. These two players always get up for this match-up. And rightfully so. This rivalry has the possibility of being an all-timer when it is all said and done between these two. Many of their match-ups last season were cut short by the score of the game, but the one game where the Spurs won, it showed how intense this rivalry could get.
  2. Pace – The Thunder and Spurs find themselves on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to pace. Oklahoma City is 3rd in the league, while San Antonio is currently 28th. It’s no surprise when you look at the point guards for each team. That said, Chris Paul is still savvy enough to know how to control the pace and be efficient while doing it. But as long as the Thunder use their defense to jump-start their offense, there should be no reason why this game isn’t in the Thunder’s favor pace-wise.
  3. Jalen Williams – There’s a lot of buzz around Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren…and deservedly so. J-Dub, the third part of that triumvirate, has yet to really catch his rhythm this season. As good as he is though, it’s only a matter of time. He showed signs of shaking off his preseason ankle injury in the last game and here’s hoping that continues moving forward.

Thunder @ Denver Nuggets preview (Game 1 of 82)

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  • Oklahoma City Thunder (0-0) @ Denver Nuggets (0-0)
  • When: Thursday, 24 October 2024 at 8:00pm CST
  • Where: Ball Arena, Denver, CO
  • TV: TNT

The Set-Up

There hasn’t been a more anticipated season for the Thunder than this upcoming season. You can maybe argue the 2012-13 season where the Thunder were coming off a Finals appearance. Or maybe the 2015-16 season where the team was stacked with talent, but also a ticking timebomb. But for some reason, this season feels different. Maybe it’s the wide-open nature of the league, where a new champ has been crowned the last 6 seasons. Maybe it’s the fact that this feels like the most cohesive and deepest team in Thunder history. Maybe it’s the fact that youth is still on our side and we still have one of the most, if not the most, coveted asset chest in the league. Whatever it is, the vibes are still immaculate, the calendar is starting on a new season, and hope is springing eternal. It’s the first step in the journey. Game 1. Thunder Up!

This is the first of 4 meetings this season between these two division, conference, and possibly, championship-contending rivals. The Thunder won the season series last year 3-1, winning the last three games of the series after getting trounced in their home-opener.

Betting Info

  • Line: DEN -1.5
  • O/U: 227.5

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Thunder vs. Pelicans – Game 3 Adjustments

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  • Series: OKC leads 2-0
  • When: Saturday, 27 April 2024 at 2:30pm CST
  • Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, LA
  • TV: TNT

Game 2 Notables

  • The Thunder’s starting line-up outscored the entire Pelicans team, 108-92, in Game 2.
  • Thunder forced 17 turnovers, while only coughing it up 8 times in Game 2.
  • Pelicans are shooting 26.7% from three in the series, so far. OKC is shooting 39.3% from three.

Game 3 Adjustments

  1. Prepare for the zone – There was a point in the 2nd quarter of Game 2 where the Pelicans were looking for something to get them back in the game and deployed a zone. The zone has given the Thunder fits all season and it allowed the Pelicans to cut an 18-point lead to single digits. The Thunder adjusted by putting Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the top of the key and allowing him to hunt for avenues to get into the teeth of the defense. After a couple successful trips down the floor, the Pelicans reverted back to their more traditional defense and the zone wasn’t deployed again. With that said, you can bet the Pelicans will look at film and try to explore ways to successfully deploy the zone again.
  2. Survive the initial onslaught – First road game for this team in the playoffs. There are bound to be nerves. It is almost inevitable that the Pelicans will get out to a quick start in either one or both of these next two games. Lucky for the Thunder, they’ve done the whole “get down early and eventually come back” thing throughout the entire season.
  3. Adjust to the referees – The refs shouldn’t be affected by what players and coaches say after games. But refs are humans and they do watch games and replays after games. Did the Thunder flop on every one of the 8 offensive fouls that were called on the Pelicans in Game 2? No. Did they flop on some? (Kevin James with hands in pocket meme) I would bet my house the Pelicans don’t get called for 8 offensive fouls in a game the rest of the series. I would also bet something of value, but not as much as my house, that OKC will get hit with a flopping call sometime in these next couple of games.
  4. Trey Murphy III – They say the 3-point shot is the great equalizer in basketball. For the Pelicans to have any chance in this series, they are going to have to find a way to get Murphy III more clean looks from three. That is what the Thunder have to prevent in New Orleans. Game 1 showed that New Orleans could “hang” with the Thunder if Murphy is being a threat. But in game 2, with Murphy completed muted, the Thunder were able to play a lot more freely defensively and blow the Pelicans out.