Thirty miles west of American Airlines Center, the preseason curtain lifts on the Mavericks, and on No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg as Oklahoma City rolls into Dickies Arena in Ft. Worth on the second night of a back-to-back. Tonight will mark the first appearance for the Thunder on Griffin Media. KSBI will air three preseason games while KWTV will air four regular season games with the first coming on Oct 25.
Where to WatchDate: Oct. 6Time: 7:30 PM CTLocation: Dickies Arena Fort Worth, TXTV: KSBI 52The Thunder storyline
Oklahoma City opened preseason with a 135–114 win in North Charleston, playing clean and fast without several headliners. Aaron Wiggins poured in 23, Jaylin Williams splashed five threes, Usman Jang set the tone early, and rookie guard Nikola Topić handled extended minutes with poise. Head coach Mark Daigneault liked the starting point: the ball popped, the pace held, and the group looked like it had been together longer than a week.
OKC Thunder open preseason with 135–114 win over Hornets in Charleston“The ball moved really well, got into a nice rhythm on offense… a good starting point for us,” Daigneault said.“It was more about us growing as a team and working on our priorities,” added Wiggins.Dallas, through a Thunder lens
Flagg is the headline, but the Mavericks’ continuity matters in October. With so many returners, their reads are quick and their spacing rules are second nature. Expect early experiments with Flagg as a point-forward, grab-and-go in transition, hub touches in the half court designed to bend help and find corner shooters.