OKC Thunder to Face Tough Slate to Close Season
The NBA has officially announced all 82 regular-season contests for all 30 teams.
For the Oklahoma City Thunder, they’ll embark on their first nationally-televised contest in over two years, bring on board a rookie class including three top-12 selections, and look to improve upon their 24-58 record last season.
Among the flurry of contests, rotational change is to be expected. With a bevy of young talent, a jam-packed roster, and potential injuries on the horizon – the Thunder’s roster will expand upon their base 15-man unit throughout the season.
Over the next week on Inside The Thunder, I will be breaking down the Thunder’s regular-season schedule from the first tip-off to the final horn.
In today’s article, I will be breaking down the Thunder’s closing slate of contests:
The Setup
The past two seasons, the Oklahoma City Thunder have utilized their closing segments of the season to blossom the back-end of the rotation.
With Oklahoma City concluding the 2020-21 regular season with a 1-9 endcap and a 22-50 overall record, the franchise entered the lottery with the fourth-best stakes of a top selection. Last season, the team closed the year 4-6 with a 24-58 record, good for the fourth-best odds for the second-consecutive.
As teams’ playoff positions are established, seeing bench units net starter-level minutes is to be expected throughout the league. Going into this season, that expectation will be in play for the Thunder.
Oklahoma City’s Rough Close
The regular-season schedule did not tie up in the Thunder’s favor, particularly in the win column. With the Thunder closing the season against the Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors, Utah Jazz, and the Memphis Grizzlies.
Combined, the Thunder tallied a 2-12 record against these Western Conference foes.
Context does matter across these victories, as the Thunder’s lone versus the Suns came in the backend of the year – resulting in Olivier Sarr starring with 24 points.
The silver lining to context pieces such as this though is much uncertainty will be stirred across the league. With a healthy Clippers squad and the Lakers and Pelicans attempting to break the playoff “locked” seeds – the pressure will be on for one or more of these teams listed.
Due to this, the Thunder, who may elect to play their traditional bench late, would be tasked with some tough games down the stretch.
How Does This Impact the Thunder?
While the Oklahoma City Thunder are expected to hover around the lower third of the Western Conference for most of the season, there’s still a chance that they sneak into Play-In territory if the team manages to catch their stride.
In the instance of these games having with playoff implications, the Thunder starters would be in full force. However, if that situation dissipates, Mark Daigneault rolling out his youth squad would be likely – potentially adding a few more ping-pong balls to Presti’s pile.
