3 Takeaways From The Thunder's Eighth Win In A Row

The Oklahoma City Thunder have a new franchise record thanks to the 2025-26 Thunder team. This is the first team to ever start the season 8-0 beating the previous record of 7-0 by the two previous Thunder teams. They accomplished this by beating the LA Clippers 126-107 on Tuesday night in a game that took a while to get a hold of.

It was all ex-Thunder player James Harden to begin the game. Harden had the Clippers' first 12 points as Los Angeles got out to a quick 12-2 lead. The Thunder have been in these situations before, and with the help of their defense, they were able to get themselves back into the game.

Once the Thunder went up 81-78 after an Aaron Wiggins three in the third quarter, they never lost the lead and would cruise to a win. Six Thunder players would have double-digit points in the win, and now the question is, how long can they extend this win streak?

In this record breaking win multiple things were evident about this Thunder squad.

Here are three takeaways from the Thunder’s win against the Clippers.

SGA James Harde — Nov 4, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; LA Clippers guard James Harden (1) dribbles the ball against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) in the first half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

1. The Thunder need extra possessions to thrive

Oklahoma City didn’t start the game as its usual aggressive self. The Thunder had no steals and only two offensive rebounds in the first quarter Tuesday night against the Clippers. This caused the Thunder to allow the most points they have in an opening quarter this season, with the Clippers scoring 33 points. Then OKC showed up.

The Thunder settled back into their defense and played their game in the second quarter. This propelled the Thunder to have six steals and cause the Clippers to turn the ball over eight times in the second quarter alone, which got them back into the game as they outscored the Clippers by nine points and went into the half only down by one.

OKC would finish the game with 12 steals and would show that there is a night-and-day difference when they get extra possessions and when they don’t.

SGA — Nov 4, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) shoots a free throw against the LA Clippers in the first half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

2. The MVP is playing like the MVP

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander returned to his original NBA home and left them with a performance to remind them they made a bad decision trading him. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 30 points, 12 assists and four rebounds. The MVP also currently leads OKC in blocks this season and added three tonight to extend his lead in that stat.

Gilgeous-Alexander has continued to perform like he did last year, and doesn’t show any sign of stopping. With his 30 points tonight, Gilgeous-Alexander now has 80 straight regular-season games where he has scored at least 20 points. The only other player to have a longer streak is Wilt Chamberlain with 92 games and 126 games. Gilgeous-Alexander continues to show why he’s the reigning MVP and why he deserves to win it once again.

Sep 29, 2025; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Isaiah Joe (11) poses for a photo during the 2025 Oklahoma City Thunder media day at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

3. Isaiah Joe is automatic

The Thunder had a rough time shooting the ball from deep in their first couple of games of the season, and it's clear to see it’s because they didn’t have Isaiah Joe. Joe was the Thunder’s second leading scorer Tuesday night as he had 22. He hit seven threes tonight and shot 60% from beyond the arc.

It seems as if he has jolted the Thunder as a unit to shoot the ball better from beyond the arc, as the Thunder shot 47.4% from three against the Clippers. Joe is the kind of player who will give your team a spark after hitting a big shot. Luckily for the Thunder, Joe hits those shots all the time.