OKC Thunder Hoping for Another Hot Shooting Night to Close Out Lakers

The Thunder have been on fire from beyond the arc this series.

May 5, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Jared McCain (3) gestures after scoring a three point basket against the Los Angeles Lakers in the second half during game one of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City has been on fire all series, and one more hot night should send the defending champions back to the conference finals.

On Monday night, the Thunder will be looking to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the second straight year. Leading 3-0 over the Los Angeles Lakers, the Thunder have shown their dominance in a number of areas throughout the series, including from beyond the arc.

After struggling at times from deep during the regular season, the Thunder have been able to find some consistency shooting in their playoff run. Through seven games, the Thunder have shot at least 35% from three in five games, including four straight contests of nailing at least 38% of their threes.

That shooting excellence has been a key reason why the Thunder have managed to look so good offensively in this series, despite the Lakers doing everything they can to limit Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. While the MVP might be ready to have a statement performance and make his way back to the conference finals, getting some more hot shooting from his supporting cast will make the Thunder virtually unbeatable.

Against a Lakers team that’s missing its offensive firepower in Luka Doncic, it has to be demoralizing for them that Oklahoma City has been such a machine offensively this series. While the Thunder should be able to get out of LA with an 8-0 record in the postseason, nailing some early threes could be enough to quickly sink the Lakers.

Against a team that can likely become defeated quickly in Game 4 after going down 0-3, the Thunder need to bring the energy from tipoff to take out their West Coast foe. While closeout games are one of the toughest for any team, this Thunder team already closed out one sweep on the road earlier this postseason.

It’s also worth nothing that Oklahoma City is undefeated in Game 4 in the Gilgeous-Alexander era, so the Thunder aren’t a team that likes to leave anything on the table before heading back home. One of the Thunder’s luxuries throughout the series has been the emergence of several players as 3-point shooters.

After Jared McCain had a couple of outbursts at home to begin the series, Cason Wallace, Ajay Mitchell and Isaiah Joe all did their part in Game 3. As the Thunder look to get another sweep in the books, another night of hot outside shooting should be enough to get them to the conference finals.