The Thunder didn’t waste any time drawing a line under last spring’s playoff disappointment. In Tuesday night’s NBA opener, Oklahoma City got the San Antonio Spurs back in front of them and answered with a 116-104 win that looked like a statement from the start.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did what he does, piling up 32 points to set the tone for Oklahoma City. But the story also turned on a new perimeter threat: Jared McCain, who dropped 20 points and hit six of eight shots from 3-point range.
That kind of shooting mattered against a Spurs team built around Victor Wembanyama. McCain’s work from deep gave Oklahoma City another weapon San Antonio had to chase, and the Thunder used that balance to build control early. By halftime, Oklahoma City was sitting on a 21-point lead.
The Thunder’s opening-quarter shooting helped establish the gap, and they kept finding quality looks as San Antonio struggled to get into any real offensive flow. McCain’s six 3-pointers stood out as the kind of extra scoring punch that can tilt a game when defenses are already occupied by Gilgeous-Alexander.
Oklahoma City also handled the edge that came with the matchup. The game included a heated second-quarter exchange involving De'Aaron Fox and Chet Holmgren, and officials handed out a flagrant foul along with technical fouls. The Thunder didn’t lose their footing after that and kept the game under control.
San Antonio’s night was defined by Wembanyama’s rough offensive start. He finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds, but he made just one of 13 field-goal attempts. After missing his first 12 shots, he finally scored on an alley-oop late in the third quarter.
Wembanyama still left his mark defensively with six blocked shots, but Oklahoma City made life hard for him on the other end all night long. Stephon Castle led the Spurs with 24 points and helped keep them in range after the break, but the early damage had already been done.
The result won’t erase what San Antonio did in last spring’s Western Conference Finals, and one night doesn’t settle anything about where these teams are headed next. But Oklahoma City got the opener it wanted.
Gilgeous-Alexander looked like the star he is, and McCain gave the Thunder another shooter who can swing a game. That’s a dangerous combination for a team trying to chase another title.
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For the Thunder, the injury picture is familiar in its own way, with Otega Oweh, Thomas Sorber and Nikola Topic all sidelined as they continue recovering from surgeries. Jones is the name to watch here, especially given how this matchup has taken on added offseason context, and his status could affect how Denver lines up when the ball goes up for a game that already had plenty of attention around it. [Read more 🡒]
Aday Mara Faces A Brutal Thunder Test In Home Opener
Aday Maras home opener arrives with a very different kind of assignment, and for a rookie trying to carve out a role, the timing could not be much tougher. After showing some defensive promise in his previous game against Victor Wembanyama, Mara heads into a matchup with the Denver Nuggets and Nikola Jokic, a far more established test for a young center still learning what NBA possessions demand on a nightly basis.
Maras last outing offered a glimpse of why Oklahoma City is interested in his development, but it also came with a reminder that opportunity can be fleeting. His minutes were limited, and there is no guarantee he gets the same kind of runway against Denver, where the Thunder may need to balance his growth against the realities of facing one of the leagues most demanding stars. [Read more 🡒]