It all the time felt like this Western Convention Finals sequence between the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder and San Antonio Spurs was destined to go 7 video games. That prophecy turned fulfilled on Thursday night time, as Victor Wembanyama tallied 28 factors and ten rebounds to steer the host Spurs to a 118-91 victory whereas going through elimination in Sport 6.
Again and Forth Dominance
Sport 6 was one other tilt that was on par with the overall theme of the sequence, which is dominance from the profitable group regardless of the overall backwards and forwards nature. The Thunder haven’t solely been held under 100 factors in two of their three losses this sequence, their two lowest scoring outputs of the complete season have been in these video games. Additional, the 82 factors the Thunder put up in Sport 4 was the group’s lowest scoring output since they misplaced 152-79 to the Memphis Grizzlies on December 21, 2021.
In different phrases, the Spurs have Oklahoma Metropolis ready that’s uncharted territory for the franchise post-turnaround. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning two-time NBA MVP who set the file for many consecutive 20+ level video games in March, has been held under that whole twice on this sequence and the Thunder misplaced each of these video games. On the brilliant aspect, the Thunder haven’t misplaced consecutive video games but on this sequence and it looks like SGA is unphased by this second and what it means for his legacy, regardless of his latest woes.
“Oh, I am good,” Gilgeous-Alexander mentioned. “I am able to go. Greatest sport of my profession … And if I lose, my season’s over.”
Saturday will mark the second Sport 7 in NBA historical past between two groups who every had a .750+ win pct within the common season.
The opposite got here within the 1981 Japanese Convention Finals, when the Celtics beat the 76ers 91-90 to finish their comeback from a 3-1 sequence deficit. pic.twitter.com/0WpMM1UiVh
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) Might 29, 2026
Profession Defining Sport?
SGA calling it the most important sport of his profession isn’t precisely a small deal both, contemplating the Thunder simply performed in Sport 7 of the NBA Finals final season. And actually, he’s not fallacious.
SGA’s profession is on trial this season in a means that it wasn’t final yr. He’s develop into objectively probably the most broadly disliked participant within the NBA, and his efficiency on this sequence each aesthetically and on the stat sheet has completed little to quell these criticisms. The complete world seemingly has a vested curiosity in seeing him fail on this stage, and he has yet another likelihood to tear everybody’s hearts out.
Brewing Rivalry
This sequence, regardless of the blowouts, has been a real breath of contemporary air in an NBA that’s develop into extra of a fraternity than a warzone in latest eras. There may be respectable hatred between the Thunder and the Spurs, and the superstars are on the middle of the meat. Wembanyama went viral for telling Bismack Biyombo and Mason Plumlee to levy some onerous fouls on their opponents on the finish of Sport 5, after which rookie mercenary Carter Bryant took up the trigger in Sport 6 by laying a shoulder shot on SGA.
Whichever route Saturday’s Sport 7 goes, it’s onerous to think about a actuality the place this sequence doesn’t occur a minimum of a number of extra instances within the coming years. Each groups are younger and in place to keep up their cores for an prolonged time frame, and we appear to be in an period of participant loyalty that daunts the team-hopping made so prevalent by the earlier era.
Both means, the primary version of this anthology has actually lived as much as the hype.
