The Oklahoma City Thunder are at home on Wednesday night as they take on the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.
Oklahoma City enters Wednesday’s contest holding a commanding 3-1 series lead and they can clinch the series and advance to the NBA Finals with a victory.
Of course, the Thunder got out to a quick 2-0 lead in the series before the Timberwolves blew them out in Game 3. Oklahoma City was then able to bounce back and grab a two-point victory in Game 4 to take a 3-1 series lead.
Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Now the Thunder will look to build off that performance as they try to reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 2012 when they lost to LeBron James and Miami Heat.
Oklahoma City enters Wednesday’s game with a clean injury report as they have only one player listed on it.
That player is rookie guard Nikola Topic who has missed his entire rookie campaign due to a torn ACL that he suffered last summer.
With the Thunder’s core healthy, they will need players outside of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren to step up if they want to clinch the series, which their roster has been able to do thus far in the series.
On the other side, the Timberwolves enter Wednesday’s game with a clean injury report as they have nobody listed on it.
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) and center Rudy Gobert (27) talk against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first half during game four of the western conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Target Center.
Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
This is great news for Minnesota as their core is healthy for Wednesday’s win-or-go-home matchup as they try to keep their season and championship hopes alive.
Of course, the Timberwolves will need to see a complete game from their rotation which they have not had in the series outside of their dominant victory in Game 3.
Fans can catch Wednesday’s Game 5 matchup between the Timberwolves and Thunder at 8:30 p.m. EST on ESPN.