What to Watch For in OKC Thunder vs. Miami Heat

Oklahoma City is taking on the Miami Heat on Sunday in the Paycom Center to begin a two game mini home stand in addition to a massive week ahead with the Thunder taking on four teams above .500 including the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday to wrap up this home stand.

The Thunder are riding a two game winning streak that featured a couple of comebacks while the Miami Heat have dropped two in a row.

In this game, Oklahoma City is getting most of their roster back. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, Chet Holmgren and Jaylin Williams all return from being sidelines last game with the Arkansas product returning from an 13 game stint in street clothes.

The only players left on the injury report for the Oklahoma City Thunder are Isaiah Hartenstein, Thomas Sorber and Nikola Topic. Hartenstein is still nursing his re-aggravated right soleus strain. The Miami Heat are on the second night of a back to back so will not need to submit an injury report until this afternoon.

OKC Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Miami Hea — Feb 12, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Miami Heat guard Davion Mitchell (45) defends Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) as he dribbles down the court during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

What to Watch For

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has continued his 20 point game streak three fold last week. While two of the games were ultra rare inefficient outings the third game was a brilliant performance going for 46 points on 53 percent shooting including the game tying shot at the buzzer in regulation. Coming off an ankle sprain in a high pace game will be interesting to see the superstar attempt to prolong this pursuit of the record.

The Thunder saw Jalen Williams come to life in the final frame on Friday lifting OKC to a jaw-dropping comeback win. Can the Santa product use that 12 point fourth quarter to spark a sustained run of success? Only time will tell, but it is clear he is putting the work in to recovery from offseason wrist surgery.

Can Oklahoma City bring 48 minutes of defensive intensity to the table against this freelancing high paced Heat offense? The Thunder set a tone defensively especially in the second half against Memphis and still rank as the league's best unit on that end of the floor. If the Thunder can match that style, they would be in line for their third straight win.

Game Information

Date: Jan. 11
Matchup: OKC Thunder (32-7) vs. Miami Heat (20-18)
Time: 06:00 PM CT
Location: Paycom Center –– Oklahoma City, OK
TV: FanDuel Sports OK
Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1 FM)

The Oklahoma City Thunder are opening up this two game mini home stand on Sunday against the Miami Heat as the Bricktown Ballers attempt to build on their momentum found in their last two thrilling wins. It took an eight point comeback in the final frame against the Utah Jazz to push Wednesday's win into overtime for Oklahoma City. The Thunder doubled down by mounting a 21 point comeback against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday despite being so short handed.

This two-game home stand ends on Tuesday against the San Antonio Spurs in a game that everyone has circled on the calendar since the Spurs 3-0 month of December against the Thunder, including a Christmas Day victory in the Paycom Center for San Antonio. This starts a four-game week that features four above .500 clubs on the docket for Oklahoma City.

Stay tuned to Thunder on SI for complete coverage of this game and the entire season for the Bricktown Ballers.