It’s been just a little over a week since Luguentz Dort tripped Nikola Jokic, and all hell nearly broke loose as the Oklahoma City Thunder held on to defeat the Denver Nuggets 127-101 in overtime. These two teams are extremely familiar with one another at this point, and the bad blood that exists is enough to fuel any basketball fan’s desire for fireworks. On Monday night, they do battle once again in Oklahoma City.
The overtime win was the start of a 5-game winning streak for the Thunder, who have won 8 of their last 9 games overall to maintain the top spot in the Western Conference standings. Meanwhile, the Nuggets have gone 2-2 since losing in OKC, most recently dropping a 142-103 decision at home against the New York Knicks.
Tonight’s matchup will mark the 12th time these two teams have played since March 9th of last year. Denver’s lineup has changed a bit since last year’s meeting in the Western Conference Playoffs, but OKC is nearly identical to their 2025 NBA Finals squad. As the old saying goes, “familiarity breeds contempt,” and this game is sure to feature more than its share of chippy play, if recent history tells us anything.
Game Details
Tip-Off: 6:30 PM CT
Location: Paycom Center (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
Television: NBCSN/Peacock
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, Denver Nuggets Official Game Notes
Projected Starters
Thunder
- PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- SG: Isaiah Joe
- SF: Cason Wallace
- PF: Luguentz Dort
- C: Jaylin Williams
Nuggets
- PG: Jamal Murray
- SG: Christian Braun
- SF: Cameron Johnson
- PF: Aaron Gordon
- C: Nikola Jokic
Injury Report
Thunder
- Branden Carlson (strained lower back) is OUT.
- Alex Caruso (left hip contusion) is OUT.
- Isaiah Hartenstein (left calf contusion) is OUT.
- Chet Holmgren (flu) is OUT.
- Thomas Sorber (right ACL surgical recovery) is OUT.
- Jalen Williams (strained right hamstring) is OUT.
Nuggets
- DaRon Holmes II (G League – on assignment) is OUT.
- Curtis Jones (G League — two-way) is OUT.
- Jamal Murray (sprained left ankle) is AVAILABLE.
- KJ Simpson (G League — two-way) is OUT.
- Peyton Watson (strained right hamstring) is OUT.
Head-to-Head
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder is 32-35 against the Nuggets in the regular season (19-16 at home, 13-19 on the road) and 7-4 in the Playoffs (6-1 at home, 2-3 on the road).
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder has won the season series with the Nuggets 7 times, lost it 8 times, and tied it twice.
- The Thunder went 2-2 against the Nuggets in the regular season last year (1-1 at home, 1-1 on the road).
- OKC defeated Denver 4-3 in the Western Conference Semifinals last year (3-1 at home, 1-2 on the road).
- OKC is 2-0 against Denver so far this season (1-0 at home, 1-0 on the road).