Friday night became the latest example of the West-leading Oklahoma City Thunder flexing their muscles as they gear up for a postseason run.
The Thunder’s 141-106 domination of the Charlotte Hornets gave the team with the NBA’s best record win No. 58, their fifth straight victory and their 12th in their last 13 games.
And even though some may dismiss a win over one of the worst teams in basketball, the Thunder have been showing they can beat anyone, but when they face a significantly inferior opponent, they blow them out.
As always, Oklahoma City’s depth was on display Friday. Eight different Thunder players reached double-digits in scoring, led by 30 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The MVP front runner now has four 30-point games in a row and has also reached 30 in every game of the month except for a 25-point night in a loss to Denver on March 10. He also added nine assists and six rebounds against Charlotte.
But the main reason so many are high on the Thunder being a championship favorite is because so many players contribute on a nightly basis. Chet Holmgren, who returned to action in early February after missing 39 games with an injury, scored 14 in 28 minutes and shot 50% from the field.
Jaylin Williams and Isaiah Joe had 14 a piece, Isaiah Hartenstein put up 12 of his own and Aaron Wiggins, Cason Wallace and Kenrich Williams each scored 11. Alex Caruso, the only member of the Thunder with an NBA championship ring, even recorded nine with three boards in just 15 minutes.
As usual, the Thunder didn’t need all that production but were able to spread the love nonetheless. But this high-powered Thunder unit has now reached 100 points in 29 consecutive games.
It’s also worth noting Oklahoma City has some big statement wins during its recent hot steak. It beat the Bucks, 121-105, last Sunday, took down the surprising Pistons, 113-107, won a potential NBA Finals preview in Boston, 118-112, and earned a convincing victory over the Nuggets to the tune of 127-103 before losing to Denver 24 hours later.
This Oklahoma City team might be inexperienced as far as experiencing postseason success as a group, but everything about how it is playing on the court screams it will be a tough out and is the favorite to win the West for a reason.
