The Thunder Know How To Bounce Back From Losses

The Thunder's second loss of the year is not the end of the world.

Dec 13, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso (9) reacts in the games closing seconds against the San Antonio Spurs during the fourth quarter at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

There is no need to hit the panic button. 

For the last couple of days, the only thing the basketball world has been talking about is how the Spurs took down the giant, which is the Oklahoma City Thunder. This is only the Thunder’s second loss of the season, and it now puts their record at 24-2.

Although some might think the Spurs have figured out the trick to stopping the Thunder, OKC has been in this situation before. The only other loss the Thunder have suffered this season was in their ninth game of the year to the Portland Trail Blazers. At that point, the league thought that Oklahoma City just had a solid start at 8-1, but it was only the beginning of OKC’s historic start.

After that loss, the Thunder would have one of the best bounce-back performances possible and go on to win 16 straight games, which is a new franchise record. However, OKC didn’t just win during this bounce-back stretch; they dominated. 

In this 16-game stretch, the Thunder only had three games in which they didn’t win by more than 10 points and had an average win margin of +20.8. This includes the Thunder’s 138-89 win over the Suns, which is the largest margin of victory in the NBA this season. 

Oklahoma City also proved that it can handle a team it's lost to. The Thunder came face-to-face with the Trail Blazers twice more after their original loss to them, but the result was the exact opposite.

In the first rematch, the Thunder left no doubt. Led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 37 points, OKC was able to make easy work of Portland, winning 122-95. Then, once again, in the two teams' third matchup of the year, Oklahoma City proved it was the better team. The Thunder would go up 2-1 in the season series as they won 123-115 in a team effort where six Thunder players scored 10 or more points. 

This is a positive sign for the OKC squad as they are set to match up against the San Antonio Spurs twice in the next two weeks. These matchups that are sure to be must-watch basketball could easily be a part of the Thunder’s next bounce-back run. 

Oklahoma City has proven that this year’s team has the capability to be one of the greatest teams ever, and a couple of losses don’t take that away. The Thunder might have dropped a game to the Spurs, but they can bounce back as they did once before.

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