Fresh off a dominant 129-106 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Oklahoma City Thunder has no time to rest as they prepare for their next test as they host the New York Knicks. The Knicks handled the Milwaukee Bucks on Christmas Day in New York, and they despite some mixed results in their last 10 games, they’re having a pretty solid season.
The Knicks run their offense through Jalen Brunson, who has emerged as a threat at all three scoring levels, and it helps that he has threats in RJ Barrett and Julius Randle, as well. New York’s defense is more in the middle of the pack when you look at the league as a whole, but they do well enough to get by on most nights.
The Thunder had one of their best shooting nights of the season in the win against Minnesota last night, but they cannot expect that to be the sole reason they beat better teams. The quality shots were a result of a more focused defensive strategy, which was evident down the stretch when the Timberwolves struggled to match shot for shot with OKC. The Knicks are a team that could win a shootout if the game goes that direction, so the Thunder needs to focus on another quality defensive night to secure a win.
Game Details
Tip-Off: 7 PM CT
Location: Paycom Center (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
Television: Bally Sports Oklahoma
Radio: WWLS 98.1FM OKC The Sports Animal
Twitter: Follow @ZacharyLowNBA for live tweets and discussion during the game
Game Notes: Oklahoma City Thunder Official Game Notes, New York Knicks Official Game Notes
Projected Starters
Thunder
- PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- SG: Josh Giddey
- SF: Luguentz Dort
- PF: Jalen Williams
- C: Chet Holmgren
Knicks
- PG: Jalen Brunson
- SG: Donte DiVincenzo
- SF: RJ Barrett
- PF: Julius Randle
- C: Isaiah Hartenstein
Injury Report
Thunder
- NONE
Knicks
- Charlie Brown Jr. is OUT (G League — two-way).
- Mitchell Robinson is OUT (left ankle surgery).
- Jericho Sims is OUT (sprained right ankle).
- Jacob Toppin is OUT (G League — two-way).
Head-to-Head
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder is 20-7 against the Knicks (10-3 at home, 10-4 on the road).
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder has won the season series against the Knicks 6 times, lost it 0 times, and tied it 9 times.
- The Thunder tied the season series with the Knicks 1-1 last year (0-1 at home, 1-0 on the road).