A Strong Start Can Elevate OKC Thunder in Game 3

The Oklahoma City Thunder have lost three straight Game 3s. A quick start on offense can secure an away victory.

Apr 22, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort (5) and Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks (3) in the second half during game two of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Despite winning the NBA championship in 2024-25, the Oklahoma City Thunder had a glaring flaw that saw them put themselves in much more difficult series than they would have intended to. OKC won just one Game 3 in last season's playoff run, a 29-point comeback win in the first round against the Memphis Grizzlies.

The first game of a series in a hostile environment has not been kind to the Thunder, losing the last three by a combined 50 points to the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves and Indiana Pacers. Breaking this streak will be crucial for the Oklahoma City Thunder, as a controlling 3-0 series advantage is on the brink.

If the Thunder wants to pull through with that advantage, a strong start on offense will be needed. Both first-round games so far have contained slower starts, which would be harder to come back from in a hostile atmosphere.

In the first round Game 3 that OKC won last season, the team started slow, going down by 29 points before a fourth quarter surge powered the team past the Grizzlies, but slow starts followed the team in each of its first road games of a series. Against more difficult competition in the following rounds, slow starts handicapped the Thunder from snagging crucial wins to grab full control of the series.

Without 2024-25 All-NBA wing Jalen Williams, the breathing room just gets thinner. If the team can knock down shots and get defensive stops at a high level within the first six minutes of the game, the Thunder can generate the momentum needed to silence a likely rowdy Phoenix crowd.

Despite losing one of their stars, the Thunder were able to control Game 2 in the second half behind a strong crowd and powerful execution. The team was able to maintain good form despite Williams playing just 33 games in the regular season, but the playoffs are a different beast; a strong second half showing proved that a strong start can happen without him.

"We did a really good job building the lead that we did in the 3rd heading into the 4th. Obviously, the 4th was a little wacky, head coach Mark Daigneault said. "But generally, it was a good one. We built a strong lead and were able to hold it."

If OKC can start strong in its first away game in the 2025-26 NBA playoffs, it can surely pull away and grasp an insurmountable 3-0 cushion.