The Oklahoma City Thunder have been atop the NBA universe for some time now. They enter the playoffs as protectors of the Larry O’Brien Trophy, with incumbent MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander angling for more hardware.
In contrast, the Phoenix Suns are built to apply pressure and threaten upsets. They have an elite bucket-getter in Devin Booker, a true heat-checker in Jalen Green and a prolific agitator in Dillon Brooks. First-year head coach Jordan Ott leads his group into the gauntlet with nothing to lose.
Here’s the full schedule, which will be updated as this series rolls on. The viewership is primed for compelling postseason ball, from the OKC plains to the Arizona desert.
How to watch No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs. No. 8 Phoenix Suns
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GameDateTime (ET)TVStream
1: @ OKC
Sun., April 19
3:30 p.m.
ABC
2: @ OKC
Wed., April 22
9:30 p.m.
ESPN
3: @ PHX
Sat., April 25
3:30 p.m.
NBC
Peacock
4: @ PHX
Mon., April 27
TBD
TBD
TBD
5*: @ OKC
Wed., April 29
TBD
TBD
TBD
6*: @ PHX
Fri., May 1
TBD
TBD
TBD
7*: @ OKC
Sun., May 3
TBD
TBD
TBD
* if necessary
ABC and NBC are free over the air. ABC and ESPN are also available with an ESPN Unlimited subscription.
What to know about the Thunder
After winning the NBA Finals in an emotive, exhausting seven games, Oklahoma City opened this season at a world-beating 24-1 record. It endured a narrow NBA Cup knockout from the San Antonio Spurs on Dec. 13, lost three more times that month, and then went a comparatively weak 9-6 in January.
Things stabilized after the All-Star break with 22 wins in 26 outings. OKC finished at 64-18, the second-best record in Thunder history. The team was also No. 1 in win percentage, plus-minus and net rating.
Gilgeous-Alexander somehow improved upon his MVP campaign. He produced better numbers in field goal percentage, 3-point efficiency, assists per game and turnover rate. The elastic 27-year-old cracked 30 points per game for the fourth consecutive year, and trailed only Luka Dončić for the league’s scoring title.
SGA’s supporting cast is young, deep and versatile. Chet Holmgren swats shots and stretches action from the center spot. Lu Dort locks up opposing stars. Cason Wallace, Ajay Mitchell and Alex Caruso jump passing lanes for momentous swipes.
Mark Daigneault had to shuffle his rotation with injuries to guard Jalen Williams and big man Isaiah Hartenstein. Both appear to be full strength ahead of the title defense. The NBA has seen a few 8-over-1 seed upsets in the past several decades, but it’s hard to envision such a sleek and dominant Thunder team losing its edge right now.
What to know about the Suns
Phoenix lost Kevin Durant in the offseason … and won nine more games than it did the year prior. Following a nightmarish 36-46 campaign, the Suns brought in Ott for refreshed vibes. It seems to have worked in year No. 1.
Green and Brooks arrived from the Houston Rockets in the Durant deal. The former has given Phoenix a secondary initiator with pace and range. The latter brings pure pugnaciousness. “Dillon the Villain” averaged a career-best 20.2 points per game, but he had some bumps along the way. Brooks fractured his hand in February, then was arrested on suspicion of DUI in March. Yet his April essay in The Players’ Tribune served as a rallying cry for Phoenix faithful.
Booker topped 26 points per game for the sixth time in his 11 pro seasons. When he’s off, the offense can go through capable long-range shooters like Grayson Allen, Collin Gillespie and Royce O’Neale. Starting center Mark Williams eats up the glass, but he missed Friday’s Play-In stage due to a foot injury. Oso Ighodaro held up admirably in relief.
After a late collapse versus the Portland Trail Blazers in their first Play-In game, the Suns looked much cleaner as they eliminated the Golden State Warriors. The defense held Stephen Curry to paltry 4-of-16 shooting, while Green erupted for 36 points on a 14-for-20 effort.
Phoenix wound up 17th in offensive rating and ninth on defense this season. But this series could be closer than expected if Green continues his lights-out play and if Booker elevates to previous playoff form.
Head-to-head matchups this season
OKC took three of five in-season duels, including two NBA Cup games. Two of those three were blowout wins: 138-89 on Dec. 10 and 136-109 on Feb. 11.
Phoenix claimed a 108-105 home win on Jan. 4. Booker scored 24, Brooks added 22 and masked bucket Jordan Goodwin dropped a game-high 26 points off the bench. The Suns also had a 32-point win on April 12, the final game of the regular season. That result is a wash, though — both sides sat their starters with playoff seeds already locked in.
Gilgeous-Alexander balled out against these Suns. In three games, he averaged exactly 30 points on ridiculous 50.9/50 percent shooting splits. By comparison, Booker’s efficiency took a hit versus the Thunder defense. He only played in two of those matchups, but went 41.7 percent from the field and just 27.3 percent on treys. Brooks couldn’t solve OKC, either, with 38.6/29.2 percent splits and four fouls per game across four outings.
Thunder vs. Suns playoff history
The Thunder have never played the Suns in a postseason series until right now. But the Seattle SuperSonics, their franchise predecessor, faced off with Phoenix four times between 1976-97. That included the Sonics’ seven-game victory in the 1979 conference finals, en route to their first championship.
This is a postseason novelty in an aesthetic sense, too. It’s the ultra-rare matchup between teams with orange as a primary color. The New York Knicks are the current league’s third orange member, but they have never played the Suns or Thunder in the playoffs. If it were to happen, it’d have to come in the NBA Finals.
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