OKC Thunder Continue to Prove That Winning the Turnover Battle is Essential

Oklahoma City has won the turnover battle in both Games 1 and 2 in the opening series.

Apr 2, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Cason Wallace (22) looks across the court during a time out against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

One common factor is sticking out in both of the Thunder’s first-round wins. 

Oklahoma City took care of business once again on Wednesday night, as they beat Phoenix for the second time in a row, and are now just two games away from moving on to the next round. The Thunder have dominated in almost every aspect of both games, and one certain area has been a huge factor in making sure OKC has left each game victorious. 

The Thunder have not only won each game, but they have won the turnover battle in each contest. In Game 1, Phoenix had over double the number of turnovers as the Thunder, with the Suns having 19 and OKC having eight. All the credit for this goes to the Thunder, as they had 13 steals as a team in the opening game of the series. 

This effort was led by Jaylin Williams, who had four steals and would ultimately turn into a way to boost OKC’s offense. Oklahoma City scored 34 points off the Suns’ mistakes in Game 1, and knowing it could succeed so well off of winning the turnover battle, made a point to do so going into Game 2. 

Wednesday night in Game 2 was another turnover battle victory with Phoenix turning the ball over 22 times, compared to the Thunder’s 10 turnovers. Again, credit to where credit is due, as OKC had 14 steals, disrupting the Suns’ offense at all costs. 

Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso took the lead roles in this defensive outing, each swiping three steals on the night. This would again power the Oklahoma City offense, as 22 of its points would be a result of Phoenix’s mistakes, 13 more points than the Suns would score off turnovers, and the exact amount of points Oklahoma City would win by. 

With two wins powered by OKC winning the turnover battle, it's safe to say that if the Thunder keep this up, they will continue to win. Oklahoma City will have to make it a point to keep suffocating the ball on every defensive possession and force the ball handler to make a mistake. 

This effort will most likely be led by Wallace, who finished the regular season with the third-highest steal average per game with 1.9. However, it has already been made clear in this series that multiple OKC players have the ability to make any given night a nightmare for their matchup. 

The Thunder will look to continue to win both the turnover and overall games on Saturday during Game 3 in Phoenix.