Stiles Points: OKC Thunder Show Inexperience Not a Problem in Postseason

As the Oklahoma City Thunder edged the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday, they showed their inexperience will not be a problem in the postseason.

To do this job effectively, you have to have the gift of gab. In the midst of spouting out hot takes, National Generalist can revert to buzz words and throw away phrases to move along a conversation about a topic they are not intimately familiar with.

As the National Media begins to hone in on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the postseason, they typically see two things. 1) This is an exceptionally young team and 2) They lack size and rebounding. That is typically where the conversation stops. Maybe a Shai Gilgeous-Alexander MVP debate here or a take on Jalen Williams being a rising star and if you are lucky a look at Chet Holmgren's rim protection.

Though typically all roads lead back to points one and two. Both, are technically true. The larger audience is none the wiser and the local audience is just left stewing in the abyss about the logical fallacies.

The Thunder are the youngest No. 1 seed of all time while also sitting at 27th in rebounds per game. Though, neither is holding back Oklahoma City.

In their first playoff game since 2020, the Oklahoma City Thunder earned a nail-biting win 94-92 with CJ McCollum's potential game-winner clanking off iron after rookie Cason Wallace was left on an island to put on a defensive clinic against the veteran bucket getter.

Thunder bench boss Mark Daigneault elected to close with two rookies and a sophomore flanking Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort, and was right to do so.

The two biggest plays of the night were Wallace harassing McCollum and a game-saving block from Holmgren moments earlier on his way to five rejections in his first-ever playoff game.

Seven of the 11 players the Thunder deployed in Game 1 against the Pelicans made their playoff debut on Sunday as Oklahoma City gutted out a win.

The Thunder continued to do what they have done all season: Display an uncommon maturity level for a team this young.

Despite not having their A-game the Thunder escaped a Game 1 scare from New Orleans. Now, with the experience under their belt and the rust from a six-day layoff knocked off, expect Oklahoma City to settle in against the No. 8 seed.

Stiles Points

• The Oklahoma City Thunder still went 11 deep in the rotation, which is not inherently a bad thing. It helps save miles early in the playoffs for what the Bricktown boys hope to be a Summer stint that spans til June. However, one of those 11 was Gordon Hayward who logged nine minutes without much to show for it. The cries for shifting those minutes to Aaron Wiggins' allotment should only grow louder in the playoffs as games continue to grow in stake.
• Jaylin Williams played an impactful six minutes where he brought an edge to him that the Thunder typically do not outwardly express staring down Jonas Valanciunas after hitting a triple in his face following the two getting tangled up.
• Lu Dort was exceptional on Brandon Ingram, fighting through every screen to make Ingram's life miserable.
• Despite an uncharacteristic start to the final frame for Gilgeous-Alexander which featured him turning the ball over three times, he still hit the two biggest shots of the night in a game the Pelicans have to feel they defended him the best they could.
• Great teams are able to win games they shouldn't. In a lot of ways, by missing open shots and some untimely turnovers, the Pelicans got the better of the Thunder and still lost. Those things come back to bite you in an upset bid.
• Teams that win Game 1 at home in the first round are 105-13 (89%) in those series.
• While it was imperative for the Thunder to make a statement in game one, As the old adage goes, the series does not start until the road team wins a game.

Song of the Day: Don't Stop by Fleetwood Mac.

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