Thunder's Rare Television Spotlight Carries Weight Beyond Heat Matchup Tuesday

Oklahoma City has a rare chance to prove itself in front of a much larger audience on Tuesday night.

Oklahoma City is off to quite the start in 2023. Ten days into the new year, and the Thunder have won three out of four games with a rapidly improving offense. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is continuing to play at an MVP level, and now, the entire team’s improvement is starting to show.

The Thunder to start 2023:

3-1 record
Best offensive rating in NBA (125.8)
Best net rating in NBA (+12.0)

On the rise 📈 pic.twitter.com/LZ2DyeCE0P

— 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒆 🌩 (@Three_Cone) January 10, 2023

For the first time since September of 2020, Oklahoma City will be playing a nationally televised game. And make no mistake, the Thunder earned it. Gilgeous-Alexander is fourth in points per game behind Luka Doncic, Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo, and OKC is starting to turn some heads.

Most bottom teams have separated themselves by now, and if the Thunder plan on making a run at a top draft pick, things would need to change drastically. 

It seems like Oklahoma City is content with letting this team play out the season, develop chemistry and see what happens. Tuesday night feels like a monumental moment in the process.

OKC’s two years of losing felt longer than possible, and even though the team isn’t near complete, the positives are starting to outweigh the negatives. The Western conference is currently a mess, and Oklahoma City currently sits 2.0 games out of the No. 6 seed.

With a game on national television, on the cusp of grasping widespread attention and entering the play-in conversation, there’s a big opportunity in front of the Thunder’s young core. The craziest part is two of Oklahoma City’s three lottery picks from 2022 remain sidelined nursing injuries. At full health, this team will look completely different.

It certainly feels like Oklahoma City is turning a corner, though, and team chemistry is rising with every game. A win on national television Tuesday night would go beyond the win column for the rising Thunder.

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