It’s been a week since Oklahoma City Thunder last played when they closed out the New Orleans Pelicans on the road in a first round sweep of the Western Conference playoffs. OKC has been pretty healthy over the last month, but the week off allowed the Thunder to rest up and prepare for what will surely be a tough matchup in the Western Conference Semifinals as they kick off Game 1 tonight in hosting the Dallas Mavericks.
Despite being pushed to 6 games in their first round matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers, the Mavericks are playing at a high level right now. Luka Doncic had a subpar first round series based on how he’s played this season, so don’t be surprised if he comes out ready to go, despite dealing with a sprained knee. Kyrie Irving is also someone the Thunder have to keep track of as he’s put up some big numbers, particularly in the second half of games. All in all, the Thunder have their hands full on the defensive end.
As far as OKC’s offense goes, the Mavs have struggled to get stops, but their defense did look much improved against the Clippers. LA doesn’t have the youth and depth that the Thunder have. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is an MVP finalist for a reason, Jalen Williams has been an excellent second option, and Chet Holmgren is a guy that tends to show up when needed. Add to it that Luguentz Dort and Josh Giddey have been consistently solid, and that’s not even mentioning the bench. It’s safe to say that OKC has plenty of talent all around, so this series will almost certainly come down to who can knock down shots when they matter.
Game Details
Tip-Off: 8:30 PM CT
Location: Paycom Center
Television: NBA on TNT
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, Dallas Mavericks Official Game Notes
Projected Starters
Thunder
- PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- SG: Josh Giddey
- SF: Luguentz Dort
- PF: Jalen Williams
- C: Chet Holmgren
Mavericks
- PG: Luka Doncic
- SG: Kyrie Irving
- SF: Derrick Jones Jr.
- PF: P.J. Washington
- C: Daniel Gafford
Injury Report
Thunder
- NONE
Mavericks
- Luka Doncic is PROBABLE (sprained right knee).
- Maxi Kleber is OUT (sprained right shoulder).
- Olivier-Maxence Prosper is OUT (sprained left ankle).
Head-to-Head
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder are 30-26 against the Mavericks in the regular season (17-11 at home, 13-15 on the road) and 9-5 in the playoffs (4-3 at home, 5-2 on the road).
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder have won the season series against the Mavericks 5 times, lost 7 times, and tied 3 times.
- The Thunder went 2-1 against the Mavericks last season (1-0 at home, 1-1 on the road).
- The Thunder went 3-1 against the Mavericks this season (2-0 at home, 1-1 on the road).