Inside The Thunder

OKC Thunder Claim Two of NBA's Top 10 Preseason Plays of 2025

Cason Wallace and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander pulled off a pair of the best plays from the NBA Preseason, according to the NBA's social media page.
Randall Sweet|
Oct 17, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Cason Wallace (22) moves past Denver Nuggets forward Cameron Johnson (23) during the first half at Paycom Center.
Oct 17, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Cason Wallace (22) moves past Denver Nuggets forward Cameron Johnson (23) during the first half at Paycom Center. | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

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Oklahoma City Thunder

The NBA Preseason is over, and the regular season is just a few days away.

Oklahoma City finished its preseason slate with a 4-2 record, notching wins against Denver, Milwaukee and Charlotte twice. The team's two losses came at the hands of Dallas and Indiana.

Of course, the preseason isn't always a direct measurement of how the upcoming campaign will play out. For teams like OKC with plenty of young players on the roster, though, exhibition contests are a good opportunity to get a look at what some of the team's less proven pieces have to offer.

This year, the Thunder got solid contributions from rookies Brooks Barnhizer and Chris Youngblood, resulting in Youngblood earning a two-way contract with the team.

Alongside the younger players on the roster, most of OKC's stars logged a few minutes during the preseason as well. Jalen Williams didn't see any action, but Chet Holmgren, Cason Wallace, Isaiah Hartenstein, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and others all returned to the court in front of a live audience for the first time since Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

Gilgeous-Alexander looked crisp in his time on the floor, shooting 20-for-24 en route to 51 points across three contests. In Oklahoma City's Oct. 9 win against Charlotte, Gilgeous-Alexander was being defended by Brandon Miller, a promising young player who was picked No. 2 overall in 2023.

Gilgeous-Alexander swiftly crossed over and dribbled past Miller, twisting the Hornets wing around making one last move and easily laying the ball into the basket. The play was even more impressive when considering it came against a skilled defender in Miller.

The NBA's social media page ranked Gilgeous-Alexander's head-turning drive in the top 10 plays of the preseason. The regining MVP wasn't the Thunder's only representative in the top 10, though, as teammate Cason Wallace took the top spot with a circus shot that would be nearly impossible ro replicate.

Wallace's impressive shot also came against the Hornets, as the third-year guard sprinted to the baseline in pursuit of a Jaylin Williams airball that was careening out of bounds. Wallace leaped over the baseline to try and save the errant shot, somehow throwing the ball over the backboard and into the basket instead.

Wallace's shot also came in OKC's Oct. 9 contest against the Hornets, as the team turned in multiple highlight reel plays en route to a 122-116 win.

With the preseason coming to a close, Oklahoma City will now turn its focus to the regular season opener against Houston on Oct. 21.

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Randall Sweet
RANDALL SWEET

Randall Sweet is a 2022 Oklahoma University graduate who has formerly written for the Norman Transcript and OU Daily. Randall also serves as the Communications Coordinator at Visit OKC.

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