OKC Thunder's Regular-Season Contests Against Lakers Show Good Signs for Round 2

Oklahoma City had no problem with L.A. in the regular season, and it hopes the second round of the playoffs will be the same.

April 7, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) reacts after scoring three point basket against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City is looking for history to repeat itself. 

The Thunder officially have a second-round opponent, as the Los Angeles Lakers have emerged victorious, beating the Houston Rockets in six games. Now, OKC knows exactly what it's up against and can prepare for the next roadblock on its journey back to the NBA Finals. 

Oklahoma City has already had its fair share of the Lakers, with the two teams meeting four times in the regular season this year. The Thunder had no trouble with Los Angeles this season, taking the regular season series 4-0, and are hoping that they can do more of the same this time around. 

Oklahoma City outscored the Lakers by a combined 117 points in the four games, and couldn’t find a way to stop Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The MVP played in three of the four games and was the leading scorer in each of the games he participated in. The Thunder were even able to take care of business without the star guard, with Jalen Williams stepping up with 23 points. 

One of the major attributions to OKC dominating the series was the volume of steals in each game. The Thunder had more steals than the Lakers in each game, with the least amount in a game being 12. This has been consistent for the Thunder all season and has even continued so far in the postseason. 

One player who had a huge impact in the regular season series was Isaiah Joe. Joe averaged 19.5 points in the four games they played against the Lakers in the regular season and was on fire from beyond the arc. He hit four threes in two of the games and then hit six shots from deep in the other two contests. 

Joe hasn’t had the same level of production in the postseason up to this point, as he is only averaging seven points per game this postseason, while only shooting 35% from deep. Oklahoma City will need the sharpshooter to be back to his regular-season form to help in this second-round bout. 

Oklahoma City will be at an advantage as the Lakers are set to start the second round without star Luka Doncic, and the Thunder must take advantage of L.A. being a man down. Additionally, Williams is projected to be back in OKC’s lineup once again soon and will give the Thunder an additional boost in the second round. 

Anything can happen in the playoffs, but if the second round is similar to these two teams’ regular-season contests, then OKC should have no problem with its upcoming series.