I’ve made up my mind: Entrust the Spurs the keys to Father Christmas's workshop. Put Castle in control of gift manufacturing. Allow Fox launch gifts into fireplaces, from any range he’d like. Devin Vassell can personalize the holiday treats. Barnes has the brigade of elves taken care of. And, of course, the sleigh's vehicle must without delay be altered for a taller, thinner pilot so that the colossal Wemby can drive it comfortably.
The electrifying San Antonio squad have felled the OKC on three occasions in two weeks, and in doing so have reinvigorated this NBA season. I now have increased confidence in the team's ability to bestow joy to the public than any festive tales of old.
An Ominous Opening
It seemed bleak for a spell. The Thunder might have secured the Larry O’Brien trophy in June, but commenced this campaign in even more threatening form. They strung together 24 wins in their opening 25 matchups (the lone loss was a fluky 20-point rally). In the bulk of those games, Jalen Williams, their star supporting player, was on the bench recovering from wrist surgery. Gilgeous-Alexander, their best player, seldom had to play in fourth quarters. The Thunder routed the Sacramento Kings by 31. The Los Angeles Lakers, who some predicted to be a credible rival, fell by 29; their offensive genius Doncic looked like he was facing ten men. The Suns' valiant opening earned them a close loss, by just four points. When they faced off again 12 days later, the Thunder triumphed by 49. This game knocked all the remaining leaves off the trees and ushered in the cold season 10 days early. Oklahoma City seemed poised to demolishing any opponent in its path, even the Warriors' fabled regular season record of 73-9.
A Question of Style
The Thunder are not known for a particularly appealing form of basketball. They expertly take advantage of the officials' problem over which fouls to call (a consistent whistle disrupts the flow of the game, an absent one lets players escape punishment for clear violations), often causing Gilgeous-Alexander shooting free throws after calls that would be better swallowed, while personified pest Alex Caruso seems to have total license to do whatever he likes on the defensive end. Some profess to admire, Gilgeous-Alexander maneuvering his body to draw small contact from defenders; I can only imagine those same people also like being struck hard between the legs. That’s not to mention man-mountain Dort launching off his feet and into opponents after numerous debatably slight touches. This chicanery allows haters to harbor the fantasy that in a world with ideal officiating, the Thunder would be a middling team. Genuine hoops purists know it’s far more exasperating than fundamental to the Thunder’s success, but the widespread annoyance is enough to incline some fans who might otherwise be uncommitted into cheering for Oklahoma City’s defeat.
Dominance can be impressively clinical to watch, but a record-setting performance tends to generate reduced amazement the more times it repeats. How many times does anyone really want to watch one team beat another by 35? Eventually you remember that the intrigue is the point. The Thunder were sucking the season of suspense, accumulating leads on other teams in the table as well as on the court.
Enter the Spurs
Through 21 minutes of the first San Antonio vs. OKC game this season, San Antonio trailed by 16 and looked likely to go the identical path as every other team. Instead, they have unleashed chaos on the Thunder ever since.
Against the Spurs, the Thunder look vulnerable. Each member of their core deserves significant credit for that, but this is Wembanyama's team, and the Thunder know it. “There’s this guy on their team that’s seven-foot-five and takes up a lot of space on the court,” Williams said, with some irritation, when asked what made the Spurs such a hard team to beat. The Thunder’s tall defender, 7ft 1in Chet Holmgren, is the tallest player on the floor in most games, free to secure boards and swat down opposing shots. Next to Wemby, he’s short, crude, and even hesitant. Wembanyama’s disregard for Holmgren is apparent in how he exults each time Chet misses a free throw, as though he’s scored a major victory; the way he commits a foul on him with a bit of unnecessary force; the way he told reporters he refuses to acknowledge Holmgren a competitor. (There is indeed no debate over which player is superior.) At this rate Holmgren must expect Wemby to jump out from the pantry, trash-talking, when he goes to grab for a treat.
A Festive Declaration
Wembanyama and the Spurs made their most conclusive statement yet on Christmas, thumping the Thunder by 15 on their home floor. San Antonio took the customary early surge well yet again, recovering to pile 41 points on the league’s top-ranked defense in the first quarter. De'Aaron Fox effortlessly found the miniscule holes in that defense to the tune of 29 points. The Spurs even restricted Gilgeous-Alexander to a career-low 22. He tried to compensate by whipping passes to wide-open teammates behind the arc, but they let him down by bricking almost every single attempt.
A Thunder optimist would say that a sufficient number of those three-pointers will go in in the future to produce a victory or a tighter loss, but I found the failed attempts symptomatic of a flaw. Off the back of his effortless stepback jumper, SGA is the most consistent scoring force in the league. He is tough to guard and nearly unguardable to stop. But even he can’t carry an offense entirely on his own. The Spurs put Gilgeous-Alexander under such intense scrutiny that he had to delegate more than usual, and his role players faltered under the heavier burden. Caruso and Dort are good for the sporadic three-pointer, but relying on them to make the outside shot is the worst scenario the Thunder want to be.
A League Transformed
The Spurs’ ascent couldn’t have come at a better time. Not only have they emphatically proven themselves as championship threats – but they’ve let fans to see the Thunder in {higher definition|sharper focus|
