Thunder avoid a rematch of the 2025 Western Conference Finals, but now faces a tougher opponent originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Western Conference Finals are set in the NBA, featuring the reigning champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the San Antonio Spurs. It was nearly a repeat of the OKC-Minnesota Timberwolves matchup, but these Spurs are no joke.
Can the reigning champs have another easy route to the NBA Finals?
Now that Victor Wembanyama is arriving as one of the top players in all of Basketball, this is a completely different animal from a year ago. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is playing at another level in this current playoff run, may run into a brick wall against the Spurs.
At least, that is how it was during the regular season. The two Western Conference teams met five times in the regular season, with the Spurs holding a firm victory of the season series, 4-1. This included an NBA Cup win on December 13.
If that holds true in these playoffs, Oklahoma City is going to have a hard time in this series. The key duel to watch will be Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein and power forward Chet Holmgren against Spurs center Wembanyama. Both are going to have to give their all to try to stop a blossoming superstar, and it might not be enough with both of them.
This Thunder and Spurs series will likely go the distance, and the top-seed in the Western Conference has finally met a worthy opponent. After coasting through the first two rounds with back-to-back sweeps of the Phoenix Suns and the Los Angeles Lakers, this is their toughest test yet.
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