OKC Thunder Need 3-Point Shooting to Improve Quickly

The Thunder are looking to get back on track amid injuries, and they need their outside looks to fall at a higher rate.

Oct 25, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Bennett Stirtz (14) walks down the court during the first half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Oklahoma City is having some issues adjusting to its new reality, but the 3-point shot could help even things out. 

On Saturday night, the Thunder’s nightmare week ended with a tough loss in Houston against the Rockets. With a couple of losses on the season thus far, the Thunder are hoping to regroup and get back on track as they face a two-game set against the Cleveland Cavaliers to begin the month of November. 

With a Monday night matchup in Cleveland on the horizon, the Thunder are desperate to secure a win after their recent mini skid. While the Thunder have had problems on both sides of the ball, getting the offense back to a normal level might be the most fixable problem.

Of course, that doesn’t mean the fix will necessarily be easy, but there’s a clear path to getting back on track on that end with the 3-point line. Through the first six games of the season, the Thunder rank 26th in the league in 3-point percentage at 30.9%. 

The Thunder’s two losses have been big in dragging Oklahoma City down into the bottom five shooting squads in the league. In Dallas, the Thunder went 5-of-32 from deep, followed by a 10-of-32 performance in Houston. 

While the Thunder doubled their makes against the Rockets, their 31.3% clip from beyond the arc that night was still well below league average. Considering both of those games were blowouts, it’s tough to take too much away from only one stat, but even the 10-of-32 night Oklahoma City had in Houston might have been enough to swing things in Dallas. 

In any case, the Thunder’s 3-point percentage needs to be much higher if they’re going to win with any consistency in the short term. League average thus far is 34.7%, a mark that Oklahoma City should be able to hit consistently. 

Ideally, the Thunder can start knocking down threes in Cleveland and ride better shooting for the next few weeks. Relying on the outside shot can be a dangerous game, but not having it at all can be a fatal flaw, as Oklahoma City has found out over the past two contests. 

Getting more paint touches and putting more pressure on the rim should also result in better looks from outside, so this situation is more complex than simply nailing more shots. Still, as far as results go, knocking down more looks from outside could be all the Thunder need to find the success they’re looking for.