The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs open the Western Conference Finals on Monday night in Oklahoma City, a matchup that pairs the NBA’s best regular-season team with the club that beat it four times. Game 1 is set for 8:30 ET on NBC and Peacock.
The Thunder arrive with a 64-18 record, the best mark in the league, after losing just 18 games in the 2025-26 regular season. They also rolled through the Phoenix Suns in the first round and the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Semifinals with a 10-deep rotation that has kept pressure on opponents from start to finish.
That depth has shown up in the numbers. Oklahoma City’s starters are carrying a plus-11.3 points per 100 possessions net rating in the playoffs, and its reserves are still positive at plus-7.8. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has led the way at 29.1 points and 7.1 assists per game, while Chet Holmgren is averaging 18.6 points and 9.1 rebounds. Ajay Mitchell has added 18.8 points, 4.9 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game. Isaiah Hartenstein is posting 9.9 points and 8.8 rebounds while shooting 75.6%.
There is also a perimeter edge that has stretched beyond the stars. Jared McCain and Cason Wallace are shooting better than 46% from 3-point range, and Ajay Mitchell, Holmgren, Lu Dort, Alex Caruso, Isaiah Joe and Jaylin Williams are all at least 36% from deep. On a roster full of ballhawks, that shot-making has made Oklahoma City harder to trap and harder to slow.
The Spurs bring the one thing that can complicate all of that: proof that they can beat the Thunder. San Antonio took four regular-season games from Oklahoma City, a detail that adds intrigue but does not erase the gap between a season series and a playoff one. Victor Wembanyama and Holmgren finished first and second in Kia Defensive Player of the Year voting, so the series also starts with two of the league’s best rim protectors sharing the same stage.
That is what makes this matchup feel bigger than a familiar playoff rematch. The Thunder are defending champions, and no team has repeated since the Golden State Warriors did it in 2017 and 2018. Oklahoma City has already looked built for another run, but the Spurs have shown enough to make the opening game matter immediately, not just as a first step but as a test of whether the league’s best record can survive the one team that has already solved it four times.
The answer starts Monday night, and the NBA scores that matter most may come from the team that has spent the season proving it can win with more than one lineup, more than one star and more than one way to take control of a game.
