Clutch heroics from Gilgeous-Alexander fueled a perfect homestand, featuring historic wins and MVP showdowns that electrify the NBA landscape.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have won a Western Conference best eight straight games.
Half of those victories came over the past week in the friendly confines of The Paycom Center. All four of those games on national television. Every one of them a close, competitive game that saw Shai Gilgeous-Alexander pull out some clutch time heroics. Add a dash of record-breaking NBA history and you've got yourself one of the most memorable and possibly most important stretches of the Thunder season.
Let's review what was initially perceived as a daunting homestand against various NBA contenders and MVP candidates and transformed into an undefeated sweep that has put the shine back on that Larry O'Brien Trophy.
Thunder 104 Warriors 97. Far and away, the one matchup considered to be the layup of the bunch. No Steph Curry. No Jimmy Butler. The pregame prediction did get a bit more dicey on game day once news hit that OKC would be without Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Isaiah Hartenstein, Alex Caruso and Ajay Mitchell. Oklahoma City led big at the half, but Golden State's 3rd quarter push made this one a bit close for comfort. In the end, the Warriors had no answer for Gilgeous-Alexander. A stepback 3 pointer over Draymond Green was the first of a few homestand daggers.
Thunder 129 Nuggets 126. The two preseason consensus best teams in the NBA. The two best players in the NBA. And somehow it exceeded the hype. The return of Ajay Mitchell after a 20 game absence was an instant injection of offense exactly when OKC needed it most. Jaylin Williams played the game of his career on a night he was the only available player above 6'7" on the roster. The sharpshooting duo of Jared McCain and Isaiah Joe hit timely deep balls. And Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic exchanged blow after blow. But it was the Thunder superstar who cemented himself as not only the runaway MVP favorite, but possibly the titleholder of "Best Player In The World" after drilling not one but two game-winning 3 pointers.
Thunder 104 Celtics 102. A possible NBA Finals preview? After all, these are the last two champions. OKC is the #1 seed in the West, Boston the #2 seed in the East. Once again, a matchup of MVP candidates. Once again, while the visiting candidate proved to be a worthy adversary, it was the hometown reigning Most Valuable Player who proved to clearly be the best player on the court. No matter what Jaylen Brown will tell you postgame. The real headline here is this is the game that will forever be remembered as the night Shai Gilgeous-Alexander passed Wilt Chamberlain and made NBA history with the longest 20 point streak of all-time.
Thunder 116 Timberwolves 103. A rematch of the 2025 Western Conference Finals. Pretty much the same result. While the Wolves hit a barrage of 3s to end the first half and take their first lead, OKC controlled the rest of the game. On a rare day when Gilgeous-Alexander's shot was not falling, the only drama left in the end was whether or not he would keep his 20 point streak going. Though it wasn't a game-winner, his clutch and-1 shot on Anthony Edwards with 1:46 remaining to keep the streak intact received that same sort of dagger roar from the Loud City crowd.