The OKC Thunder clinched the NBA's best record along with the top seed for the third straight season, joining a rare group.
The Oklahoma City Thunder is on a historical run, and they joined an elite group with their latest win. With Wednesday's 128-110 win over the Los Angeles Clippers, OKC clinched the secured the league’s best record and the top seed for a third straight year. That latter feat put them in rare company with just five other franchises to accomplish it: the 1984-88 Boston Celtics, 1984-90 Los Angeles Lakers, 1996-98 Chicago Bulls, 2008-10 Lakers and 2015-17 Golden State Warriors. Notably, all five teams won multiple championships during those runs.
The Thunder enter the final two games of the season with a 64-16 record, bringing them to a total 132 wins over the last two seasons. Only the Bulls and Warriors won more games in that span. OKC is looking to become the fifth team in league history to clinch the top NBA record and win the title in consecutive seasons. It hasn’t been done since the Michael Jordan-led Bulls did so in 1995-96 and 1996-97. The 64th win of the season was led by reigning MVP and current frontrunner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who put up 20 points and 11 assists. Since his return from an abdominal strain in February, the Thunder have been unstoppable, going on a 19-1 run.
Here is the full story from Thunder Roundtable writer Brandon Rahbar on the historic feat as the team keeps ascending.
Some teams falter when carrying the weight of a championship and defending that title, but OKC has stayed stout. They keep checking off historical boxes this season, but the greatest one left is the chase for a consecutive title.