OKC Thunder Enter Postseason as Youngest One Seed in NBA History
After an incredible regular season performance from Oklahoma City, the team made history on Sunday evening.
After winning 57 games in the 2023-24 season, the Oklahoma City Thunder are the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.
While this feat is impressive on its own, OKC made a 17-win improvement after winning 40 games last year and earning a Play-In berth. Not only does the Thunder's significant increase in the win column stand out, but Oklahoma City is also the youngest team to ever secure the top spot in the West heading into the playoffs.
With an average age of 23.4, OKC edged out the previous record-holder, the 2004-05 Phoenix Suns, by nearly two years. Led by MVP winner Steve Nash, Amar'e Stoudemire and Shawn Marion, the Suns won a whopping 62 games that season before being ousted from the playoffs in the Western Conference Finals by the eventual champion San Antonio Spurs.
Phoenix's starting five consisted of two players over the age of 25, including Nash, who was already 30-years-old. For the Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the oldest player in OKC's starting unit at 25-years-old.
Both teams ranked second in Sports Reference's simple rating system throughout the regular season and finished the year with a +7.4 net rating. The Suns, however, finished the year with the No. 1 offensive rating and No. 17 defensive rating in the NBA while Oklahoma City notched the No. 3 offensive rating and No. 4 defensive rating this year.
Despite a successful regular season campaign, there are many NBA fans and observers who still doubt the Thunder, believing that the team's youth could result in an early exit for the Western Conference's number one seed.
The Ringer's Bill Simmons even went as far as to say that Oklahoma City "can not beat the Lakers," due to the team's lack of size.
While it remains to be seen whether either of the aforementioned talking points will actually be an issue in the postseason for OKC, Gilgeous-Alexander said on Sunday that he thinks the team's youth will be an asset in the playoffs.
"It's going to be fun," SGA said after the Thunder dismantled the Dallas Mavericks. "Us being young, having a lot of legs. I think we can use our inexperience to help us, not knowing what it's going to be so we'll just play free. We have a lot to look forward to, we're all excited."
On Tuesday night, the No. 7-seed Pelicans and No. 8-seed Lakers will meet for the first game of the Western Conference Play-In Tournament. The winner of that matchup will earn the number seven seed and take on the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs.
The loser will face the winner of the No. 9-seed Kings and No. 10-seed Warriors on Friday night, with the winner of that contest heading to the playoffs for a first-round matchup with the Thunder.
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