OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Two years ago, the Oklahoma City Thunder were a feelgood story -- a young team that improved dramatically and accelerated general manager Sam Presti’s rebuild by reaching the Play-In Tournament.
Last season, Oklahoma City earned the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference and Mark Daigneault was the Coach of the Year. That Thunder squad lost to Dallas in the conference semifinals, but it wasn’t a cause for alarm because the squad arrived on the stage early.
This year seems different. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the runner-up in the MVP race last season, is again a candidate for the honor after topping the league with 32.7 points per game. He led the Thunder to a 68-14 record -- one of the best regular seasons of all-time. With all that success, fans are clamoring for a championship as the Thunder open this year’s playoffs at home Sunday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Gilgeous-Alexander said that while the Thunder don't worry about outside expectations, they have worked hard and are well-positioned to succeed. He said the team sees opportunity rather than pressure.
“I think guys on the team are as confident as they’ve ever been, as excited as they’ve ever been," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "And that’s all you can ask for.”
Memphis counters with Ja Morant. He averages 23.2 points and 7.3 assists. Jaren Jackson Jr. averages 22.2 points and Desmond Bane chips in 19.2.
The Thunder not only swept Memphis, taking each of the four games this season by double digits, but the closest the Grizzlies got was a 13-point loss in the teams’ second meeting.
“A big challenge,” Morant said. “Obviously, we’ve all seen them over this season. A very well-rounded team. I feel like they have a potential MVP in Shai over there that’s leading the charge. We just have to be very sound defensively, very disciplined and just play our type of basketball, man.”
Familiar situation
Oklahoma City had to wait until Friday to learn its playoff opponent, but the Thunder were in the same boat last year because they earned the top seed. The Thunder ended up sweeping the New Orleans Pelicans 4-0 in the first round.
Daigneault said the team learned from last season’s experience. He also said it was an advantage that they clinched the No. 1 seed a long time ago, which helped them start preparation for the potential play-in teams early.
Daigneault said it helps that his players learn and adjust quickly.
“I don’t know if we’re ready for everything, but we’re ready for a lot," he said.
Not just Shai
Oklahoma City has a second All-Star in Jalen Williams and a third with All-Star talent in Chet Holmgren.
Williams averaged 21.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.1 assists as a strong second option.
Holmgren can do it all. On offense, he’s a threat in the paint and beyond the 3-point line. On defense, he is an elite rim protector who can switch easily onto guards. He averaged 15.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.2 blocks.
The Thunder lost Holmgren for 50 games and Williams for 13, yet had the league's best record. That’s because they boast a deep roster that Daigneault manages well. They have seven players who average double figures and 14 players who averaged at least 10 minutes in a minimum of 32 games this season.
Defensive stoppers
Oklahoma City has several of the league’s best perimeter defenders. Lu Dort and Alex Caruso are the headliners on a unit that led the league in defensive rating.
Williams wore a T-shirt at practice on Wednesday proclaiming Dort should be Defensive Player of the Year. Caruso, acquired in an offseason trade with Chicago, was first-team All-Defense in 2023 and a second-team selection last season.
Neither of them lead the team in steals. That honor goes to second-year guard Cason Wallace, who ranks third in the league with 1.8 steals per game. Gilgeous-Alexander is close behind with 1.7 and Williams averages 1.6.
They'll be challenged. The Grizzlies come into the series as the NBA’s second-best scoring team with 121.7 points per game. Still, that average dipped to 106.3 against Oklahoma City during the regular season.
History repeats?
The Grizzlies became the first No. 8 seed to beat a No. 1 seed in a seven-game series back in 2011, when Memphis ousted the San Antonio Spurs in six games. Now, Memphis can try to add some more history. How? No franchise has been a No. 8 seed and knocked out a conference’s top seed twice in the NBA.
Simply beating a No. 1 seed has been challenging with Memphis among only six franchises to manage that feat. Denver did it in 1994 against Seattle and the New York Knicks in 1999 against Miami — back when the first round was five games. Golden State beat Dallas in 2007, Memphis topped San Antonio in 2011, Philadelphia beat Chicago in 2012 and Miami defeated Milwaukee in 2023.
If Memphis does it this time, it will be extra impressive. The Grizzlies fired coach Taylor Jenkins late in the season and enter the playoffs with interim coach in Tuomas Iisalo, who has no NBA playoff head coaching experience, leading the way.
Injury issues
Morant played through a sprained right ankle Friday night in the play-in game to clinch the eighth and final seed in the Western Conference.
Still, the Grizzlies will be without two key players. Rookie Jaylen Wells broke his right wrist April 9 in a win at Charlotte, where he was taken off the court on a stretcher. A second-round draft pick out of Washington State, Wells started 74 of 79 games for Memphis.
The Grizzlies also lost key reserve Brandon Clarke to a sprained right knee March 19 in a loss at Portland.
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AP Sports Writer Teresa M. Walker contributed to this report.
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Cliff Brunt, The Associated Press
