The Oklahoma City Thunder were winless against the Spurs this season, losing the previous three matchups to their Western Conference rivals. Tonight, in a 119-98 win, the Thunder broke that streak and finally settled the panic amongst their fans that they were incapable of beating Victor Wembanyama’s team.
“You kind of have no choice,” said Shai on playing with extra urgency in the rematch tonight. “We all knew it when we woke up this morning. This team had gotten the better of us the last two times we played them, and that doesn’t happen to this group. That doesn’t happen a lot. I can’t remember the last time it happened.”
The Thunder began the season at 24-1, matching the best 25-game start in NBA history. But after losing to the Spurs three times over two weeks, there was a sense that they had met their match. Not long after, the Thunder hit rock bottom in a blowout loss to the Charlotte Hornets on January 5. Through it all, speaking from the other side of it, Shai says the adversity has only made them stronger.
“Uncomfortable feelings and adversity are where you find growth, and it’s where you find who you are, and we showed it tonight,” Shai added. “From here on, it’s just about getting better. Tonight wasn’t our Super Bowl; it wasn’t anything other than another game in an 82-game season. We’ve got to keep finding ways to get better, and we could have ended things better tonight.”
Despite a lot of recent history between these clubs and a wild play early on in this game, the Thunder played it cool tonight, setting the tone early with a 32-point first quarter. It was a dominant display and encouraging performance from the defending champions, once again cementing their status as favorites in the West.
For his part, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dropped 34 points, five rebounds, five assists, zero steals, and four blocks on 47.8% shooting and 25.0% shooting from three. He led all scorers in the game, going +29 in 33 minutes of action.
At 34-7, this latest win should erase all doubt about the Thunder as favorites to win the title. Like every team, they have faced adversity this season, and it has only made them better. What makes them different from the rest is how they’ve responded: with sharp play, focused execution, and unwavering confidence in what they’ve built as a team.
Going forward, these teams have only met one more time this season (on February 5), but that doesn’t count the playoffs. With both squads currently leading the West standings, the Spurs and Thunder may very well be on a collision course to the West Finals.
