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| The Oklahoman
Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander explains his recent hot streak on 3-pointers
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is on a hot streak from 3-point range. First seven games: 26.8% on 5.9 attempts. Last nine games: 48% on 5.5 attempts.
As the OKC Thunder push to 16-1 and extend their winning streak to eight games, the latest Thunder Buddies episode examines Oklahoma City’s standing in a rapidly shifting NBA landscape.
The Oklahoman’s Justin Martinez and Joe Mussatto assess which teams pose legitimate threats to the defending champions, while evaluating surprising early risers.
Next up, the OKC Thunder take on the Portland Trailblazers at 6 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 23, at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
OKC will conclude group play with home games against Minnesota on Nov. 26 and Phoenix on Nov. 28. The top team from each of the six groups will advance to the knockout round, in addition to one wild-card team from each conference.
Here’s what Thunder fans need to know to stay ahead of the game.
Watch the full episode
Full transcription
Justin: Welcome, everyone, to the Thunder Buddies podcast, your source for all things Thunder basketball, courtesy of The Oklahoman. My name is Justin Martinez, and today I’m joined once again by our columnist Joe Mussatto. Joe, how you doing today, man?
Joe: I’m better now, Justin, because we don’t have to watch any more Kings basketball unless you want to. Unless you want to log into League Pass and watch some Sacramento Kings, but at least we don’t have to watch them play the Thunder anymore.
Justin: Yeah, I know. Crazy three games in OKC’s first 16 games of the season. OKC did complete the regular season sweep against Sacramento yesterday at home by a score of 113 to 99, extending its win streak to seven games. It’s now 15-1 on the season.
Joe, it’s just become a regular thing that we start off these podcasts by talking about how dominant this team is. They’re winning their games by an average of 20.3 points during this winning streak. Is there anything else to say about how good this team has been?
Joe: No. It’s like they’re so much better than some teams. On Wednesday night against the Kings, I don’t think the Thunder played particularly well. Mark Daigneault kind of said as much. They were missing a bunch of shots. Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) was tremendous as a playmaker and should have had a lot more assists. They had a bunch of turnovers, uncharacteristically so.
They didn’t really put their foot on the Kings’ throat. The Kings kind of got back in it. They actually made Shai Gilgeous-Alexander inconvenienced by making him play in a fourth quarter. And still, it’s never a game that felt within reach for Sacramento.
The Thunder can play at a C or C minus level and still have plenty of room for error. Against better teams, they can step it up. This continues to be a machine.
Justin: Yeah, and especially with the injuries. Guys are down, and they’re still not playing their best basketball and still winning convincingly. OKC is a consensus favorite to win it all.
Who are OKC Thunder’s biggest threats?
Justin: Now that we’ve hit the one-month mark of the season, I thought we’d get an updated look at some of the top contenders and biggest threats for OKC in its pursuit of a second straight title. We’ll go down the list and see which teams are real contenders and which ones are pretenders, if you’re good with that?
Joe: I’m good with it.
Justin: Before we start, what are we calling a contender? A team that can reach the Finals? Conference Finals? Push OKC to six or seven in the series?
Joe: I think they’d have to be able to make the West Finals. If we’re talking about which teams could push the Thunder, I think we’ll get through this pretty quickly. It’s a short list. So maybe teams OKC could realistically face in the Conference Finals.
Justin: And on the other side, teams that could reach the Eastern Conference Finals as well. I think that gives us a good list. Let’s start with the Western Conference.
I’ll throw out a team first: the Denver Nuggets. They’re 11-3 on the season. A lot of people had them as the biggest threat entering the year.
Offensive rating: 2nd. Defensive rating: 3rd. Net rating: 3rd. Playing great basketball. We know what Nikola Jokic can do, but Jamal Murray is averaging a career-high 22.5. Cam Johnson got off to a slow start but is starting to knock down shots.
Just what do you think about Denver? Contender?
Joe: Yes. Jokic statistically is having his best season ever in some advanced metrics, which is saying something. He’s breaking some of the formulas they’ve created for these metrics.
If we were tiering this, Denver is in a tier by itself as a realistic challenger to Oklahoma City.
Thunder is 15-1, Denver is 11-3. Point differential-wise, Denver is +11.5, which is almost twice as good as Detroit, the best team in the East. They have more depth. Jokic looks less frustrated, partly because less is on his shoulders. And Cam Johnson is probably in the worst stretch he’ll have this season. I think they’ll be just fine.
Justin: Speaking of Cam Johnson, he’s shooting 29.2% from deep this season, but 6 for 10 in his last two games.
They’ve got added depth with Jonas Valanciunas, Bruce Brown, Tim Hardaway Jr., plus returning players like Aaron Gordon, who had a great playoff run and is averaging over 20 this year.
With Jamal Murray playing his best basketball, no doubt this is a contender. Biggest threat to OKC.
Joe: If I can move to another contender: Houston. They’re way better than I thought they’d be at this point.
I thought it would take more time to gel and for young players to grow into roles, but Houston is right there with Denver in point differential.
Without Fred VanVleet, the Rockets have been just as dominant. These top three teams in the West are outplaying every team in the East.
Even without VanVleet, KD is being KD. He looks comfortable. Şengün and Adams are basically rebounding half of Houston’s misses. It’s a cheat code offensively: “We missed a shot—fine, we’ll get the rebound and score anyway.”
Şengün has taken a big step, Jabari Smith looks great, Thompson looks great. Houston looks legit. And I love the clash of styles — Denver runs everything through Jokic, OKC has Shai leading the attack, and Houston has this double-big dynamic with Kevin Durant thrown in. Houston would be next on my list.
Justin: Agreed. 10-3 on the season. Offensive rating: 1st. Defensive rating: 7th. Net rating: 2nd. You mentioned Şengün, he’s playing at an All-NBA level: 23.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, 7.4 assists, shooting 44.7% from deep on a career-high volume.
They’re a tough matchup with a lot of size. They can dictate pace and slow things down. They also aren’t even healthy yet. Dorian Finney-Smith hasn’t played. Tari Eason is out again. Those are two great defensive wings they can throw at Shai and J-Dub, when he’s healthy. So yes, absolutely a contender, though Denver is still in its own tier above.
Let’s go to a surprise team — the San Antonio Spurs: 10-4. Offensive rating 10th. Defensive rating 5th. Net rating 6th.
Joe: They’re dealing with injuries now — Wemby is out, Steph Castle has missed games. But Harrison Barnes has been winning them some games. If they just tread water until healthy, they’ll be fine.They announced themselves from day one as scary. I can’t see the Spurs beating the Thunder in a playoff series, but I can absolutely see them reaching the West Finals.
Their young guys are really good. Dylan Harper’s been out after a great start. They haven’t even been fully healthy. Wemby is a one-man defense, Castle is a lockdown perimeter guy. If they add more shooting or make a trade at the deadline, watch out. I don’t know when their time will come, but it’s coming quickly.
Justin: Wemby is set to miss multiple weeks with a strained left calf. Same injury Dylan Harper is dealing with. Fox missed time but is back—exciting two-man game when healthy.
Based on our definition, I’ll say they are contenders because I can see them reaching the Conference Finals. I can’t see them beating OKC in seven, but I could see them beating Houston, Denver, the Lakers, even Minnesota.
Let’s go rapid fire—another team: the Lakers.
Joe: They deserve to be here, and it’s because of Luka and LeBron. If those two are healthy, we saw what happened last year in OKC—gave the Thunder a real challenge.
They lack depth to keep up with OKC, but they’re well-coached. I like what JJ Redick is doing. If healthy, there’s a path where they make a very outside run to the West Finals.
Justin: Record 11-4. Offensive rating 11th, defensive 17th. Not eye-popping, but LeBron just returned from injury.
They’re not deep, but Austin Reaves is playing extremely well. DeAndre Ayton and Jake LaRavia have given solid minutes. Marcus Smart adds toughness. I’d call them contenders in the “can make the West Finals” sense, though I’d expect OKC to beat them in 5 or 6.Rui Hachimura also shooting extremely well this season.
What about Minnesota? 10-5. Back-to-back Conference Finals trips. Did I leave them off unfairly?
Joe: I think you’re disrespecting the Timberwolves. They’re last on my list, but they’ve earned being here.
Anthony Edwards is a top-10 player who can create offense when things bog down. Rudy Gobert got off to a weird start but still elite defensively. Julius Randle putting up big numbers. I don’t love the construction, I don’t always love the vibes. Ant is always liable to say something that gets him in trouble or rubs the locker room the wrong way. I feel like Minnesota always has these crises that they could avoid if they stayed out of their own way. But their defense is great, and Ant can carry them late. They’re in the tier.
Justin: Fair point. My concern is that improvement would need to come from internal development — Dillingham, Jaylen Clark, Terrence Shannon Jr. haven’t stepped forward yet. Other teams behind them may be catching up faster.
Now let’s move over to the Eastern Conference. Let’s start with Detroit: 13-2. Eleven-game win streak. Offensive rating 12th, defensive 2nd. Cade Cunningham playing like an All-NBA guy. Jalen Duren has taken a leap. Dennis Jenkins has come out of nowhere. Duncan Robinson and Caris LeVert providing shooting. Isaiah Stewart setting a physical tone. Where do you stand on them?
Joe: You have to include them. They could absolutely make the East Finals. Cade is incredible. Duren might be an All-Star. They are second in defense, which is wild. But Duren has taken a leap, Ausar Thompson is great, Beef Stew is protecting the rim, and Cade is big enough to hold his own defensively. Dennis Jenkins looks like a Thunder-type player. I’m surprised OKC didn’t find him.
Justin: Yeah, and I was concerned when Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr. weren’t brought back, but Duncan Robinson and LeVert have filled that production. Tobias Harris is out but will return, and this team could make a move—they have contracts and assets. Definitely a contender, maybe my pick to win the East right now.Give me another Eastern team.
Joe: Cleveland Cavaliers. Still a contender, though it’s been a weird season. Garland is hurt, Mitchell is incredible but maybe being asked to do too much. Evan Mobley is great, but we keep waiting for that huge offensive leap. Jared Allen has been okay. The vibes feel weird in Cleveland, but they’re still winning. And ultimately, the regular season doesn’t matter — they need to prove it in the playoffs.
Justin: Garland has only played three games due to a toe injury. He drives their pace and takes pressure off Mitchell. Still 10-6, with top-13 offense and top-10 defense. Once healthy, they should click. Definitely still a contender.
What about the Knicks?
Joe: My Finals pick was Thunder vs Knicks, and I still feel good. They can come out of the East. Offense looking good under Mike Brown’s system. I think they should be better defensively with Anunoby and Bridges, but Brunson and Towns make that tough. If Mitchell Robinson is healthy, he can erase mistakes. Still a contender for me.
Justin: Agreed. It’s hard to hide both Brunson and Towns defensively. Towns also isn’t shooting the three well. But Anunoby looks great, Mikal Bridges shooting well again, and they’re deep. Detroit is my pick to come out of the East today, but New York and Cleveland are in that contender group.
Orlando?
Joe: Pretenders. Still don’t have enough offense. Same story with Atlanta and Miami. One team I’ll mention that’s not even in the play-in right now is Milwaukee. Giannis is incredible. Rollins and AJ Green hitting shots. Giannis and shooters might be enough.
Justin: Philly doesn’t do much for me. Milwaukee—if Ryan Rollins is your No. 2 scorer, I’m not confident. Atlanta is the true wild card. They look better without Trae, so who knows what they’ll be by playoff time.
Joe: Also wild that Milwaukee is 11th in the East at 8-7, while in the West 11th place is the Clippers and they’re 4-10. The West is brutal.
Justin: Yep. In terms of contenders, I think we’ve named them. Did we talk about Golden State?
Joe: We didn’t.
Justin: I was hopeful Kaminga would step forward, but he’s backsliding out of the rotation. Al Horford hasn’t been what they needed. We know what we get from Steph, Jimmy, and Draymond, but I don’t see them beating Houston, Denver, OKC, LA, or even the Spurs in a series.
Joe: Everything would have to break perfectly. They have young contributors, but do I see them beating OKC or Denver to reach the West Finals? No.
Justin: Even if I list them that way, Houston could beat Denver. Lakers maybe could too. But Golden State? Hard for me to picture.No love to the 9-6 Phoenix Suns?
Joe: They’re beating bottom teams, but good for them.
Justin: Yeah, Dillon Brooks brings culture and edge. Jalen Green has been out and they’re still 9-6. Cool story, but not contenders.
OKC Thunder court design, city edition jerseys
Joe: Looking at the schedule, Wednesday is an ESPN Cup game against the Wolves. That’s the standout among the upcoming games.
Justin: Another chance to see the court and uniforms again. Those city edition uniforms looked great with the court. Maybe my favorite ever. The darker wood stain looks amazing.
Joe: Best court the Thunder has ever had. Looks like an old-school high school gym floor. Perfectly matches the jerseys. Big fan.
Justin: Some people said they wish OKC would rebrand permanently to that look. I don’t see it happening anytime soon.
Joe: Maybe make it a permanent alternate. Everyone clearly loves them—saw a ton at the arena.
Justin: That is all for this one. Thank you for listening. Joe, thanks for taking the time. It’s been a busy few days. We’ll see you next time.