Inside The Thunder

OKC Thunder Return To Practice, Discuss Upcoming NBA Playoff Journey

The Oklahoma City Thunder returned to the practice court on Tuesday ahead of the NBA Playoffs with Isaiah Hartenstein, Mark Daigneault and Lu Dort talked to the media.

Rylan Stiles

Apr 6, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) warms up before the start of a game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Apr 6, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) warms up before the start of a game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
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Waiting is the hardest part, with the Oklahoma City Thunder on ice for seven days until the start of its NBA Playoff journey on Easter Sunday inside the Paycom Center.

The OKC Thunder will not know its opponent for the first round until Friday night as the NBA Play-In Tournament wraps up. Some clarity will come tonight as the No. 7 seed is decided between the Golden State Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies.

On Tuesday, the Oklahoma City Thunder returned to the practice court ahead of Sunday's playoff opener. The excitement for the postseason was felt in the air of the gym and the crowded media scrum. Head coach Mark Daigneault, Defensive ace Lu Dort and big man Isaiah Hartenstein all spoke to the media.

The common themes were about preparing for the postseason and what stands out about Playoff basketball as all three have various experience with the postseason.

“The postseason is about doing everything you can to win the next game in front of you. For us right now, that’s Game 1 on Sunday. When Game 1 is over, that Series will not be over, and it’ll be Game 2," The Thunder head coach explained.

OKC's seven-footer explained the differences in playoff basketball and the regular season.

“In the playoffs, there are so many highs and lows. How can we reset is the biggest thing. I think those are the best teams. It doesn’t matter what happens in the game. They were able to reset and focus on the next opportunity. That’s been the main thing," Hartenstein said.

The former Knick is no stranger to the wars that are fought in the NBA Playoffs and he went into detail about blocking out the noise and being able to reset.

“You gotta blind out the machine. Blind out the media, especially after the games. You lose once, it’s the end of the world. If you win one, you’re the greatest of all time. I think it is really going game-by-game focusing on what we can control," the big man explained. "That was also the reason I wanted to come here. [OKC's organization] is so focused on the day to day."

The focus for now is how the Thunder can improve throughout these first few postseason practices internally as they await their matchup.

“It’s a unique situation to have this much time between games and not know your opponent. We’ll both have the same amount of time to prepare. We’ll both have Saturday and then we play Sunday. You’re in no disadvantage. We definitely learned from last year on how to manage the week," Daigneault said when discussing the preparation.

Most of Oklahoma City's rotational pieces have been resting the last two games of the season, giving a ten-day gap between the last time they all took the floor together and Sunday's playoff opener.

This time on the practice court throughout the week will be important for the Thunder and a challenge they got familiar with last year as the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference facing the same setup.

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Rylan Stiles
RYLAN STILES

Rylan Stiles is a credentialed media member covering the Oklahoma City Thunder. He hosts the Locked On Thunder Podcast, and is Lead Beat Writer for Inside the Thunder. Rylan is also an award-winning play-by-play broadcaster for the Oklahoma Sports Network. 

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