The Oklahoma City Thunder are poised to advance to the Western Conference finals, unless an unprecedented reversal of fortune occurs in NBA history.
Securing a 131-108 victory against the Los Angeles Lakers, the Thunder established a 3-0 series advantage on Saturday and maintain an unblemished record across seven playoff contests. Their record stands at 27-1 since the commencement of February in matches featuring Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The team aims for a clean sweep this Monday in Los Angeles (10:30 p.m. ET, Prime Video). Historically, no NBA squad has ever overcome a three-game deficit in a series.
The Lakers managed to compete effectively during the initial half before their home audience, exchanging scores and holding a narrow 59-57 advantage at intermission. However, their grip slipped as OKC initiated the third period with a dominant 21-6 surge, reduced the margin to five points later in the third, and then the Thunder unleashed a level of performance characteristic only of themselves.
Los Angeles appeared utterly exhausted by the conclusion, suggesting they had been competing against the league’s top team without their crucial player for three consecutive matchups. The Lakers conceded defeat by deploying their reserve players with 3:38 left on the clock.
The Thunder surpassed their opponents by a margin of 74-49 in the latter half of the game.
Despite the Lakers successfully curtailing a stellar performance from Gilgeous-Alexander (who scored 23 points on 7-of-20 attempts), Oklahoma City’s extensive roster of role players once more neutralized this factor. Six additional individuals tallied double-digit points, and the squad as a whole achieved a 56.4% field goal percentage and 44.7% from beyond the arc, accumulating just nine total turnovers.
It remains uncertain how this particular series might have unfolded had Luka Dončić been available (or similarly, Thunder standout Jalen Williams), yet the outcome thus far aligns with expectations. While the Lakers have periodically challenged the Thunder, their efforts have never sustained sufficiently over a complete match. Each defeat has been by a margin exceeding ten points.
Following the contest, Lakers head coach JJ Redick expressed to reporters:
“They’ve kicked our ass three straight games. They’re an incredible basketball team.”
Including regular season encounters, the Lakers currently hold an 0-7 record against the Thunder this season, with an average point differential of 25.4. Their narrowest defeat was by nine points. The sole occasion when the Lakers began a game fully fit was on April 2, when both Dončić and Austin Reaves sustained injuries.
A reversal of fortune might still be possible. However, the Lakers’ performance in the final quarter failed to instill assurance.
