There are no real tests for the Oklahoma City Thunder until the postseason, but for a regular season game this was as good as it gets. San Antonio had beaten Oklahoma City three times in 12 days last month and punctured the air of invincibility around the defending champs. Teams were starting to believe they had a real shot against the Thunder in a series.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Oklahoma City aced their test and looked invincible again on Tuesday night.
The Thunder put up 40 points in the third quarter — including an 11-0 run — and pulled away before going on to a comfortable 119-98 win at home that seemed to set things right. Although the Thunder didn’t see it that way.
“This wasn’t our Super Bowl, it wasn’t anything else but another game on an 82-game schedule,” [Gilgeous Alexander said in his walk-off interview on NBC](https://x.com/NBAonNBC/status/2011284175735640453), playing down the win.
As it was last season and throughout their championship run, this Thunder win was built on their suffocating (and league-leading) defense. This was the first time the Spurs had been held under 100 points this season, leading to a 21-point loss that was San Antonio’s worst of the season.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with a game-high 34 points, plus five boards and five dimes. He looked every bit the MVP.
Jalen Williams added 20 for Oklahoma City.
However, the real difference in this game was the Thunder’s depth. It wasn’t so much just the scoring — although the Thunder bench outscored the Spurs 46-32 — but on the other end of the court. The Spurs bring in Alex Caruso, who scored 13 and was +27 on the night. Then there was the Thunder getting a good night from big man Jaylin Williams, who had 11 points, 10 rebounds and was +30.
Part of OKC’s slump has just been the team not hitting its 3-pointers, but Tuesday night the non-star Thunder were 10-of-24 (41.7%) from beyond the arc.
Stephon Castle led the Spurs with 20 points and eight assists but had five turnovers on the night, while Victor Wembanyama scored 17 with seven rebounds. As a team, the Spurs shot just 40% on the night (which is not going to get it done when the Thunder are shooting 51.9%).
San Antonio announced its presence as a contender in the West with their wins against the Thunder last month, but this was a reminder of just how hard it will be for them — and everyone else — to beat OKC four times in seven games come April and beyond.