2025 WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: #1 Oklahoma City Thunder vs #6 Minnesota Timberwolves (OKC leads 1-0)

[Mamba81p]

Pretty disappointed to watch as a neutral.

I’m trying to imagine a universe OKC doesn’t win a world championship

Does that mean they need to beat the French national team

French national team is not the world champion in the fiba version if that's what you were alluding to.

[HotRocks34]

SGA is a foul merchant but he's also really really good.

Yes.

After the Luka trade I think Tim MacMahon was talking to some league exec and he said that there are only four automatic max contracts in the league (unless you're Nico): Jokic, Giannis, Luka and SGA.

SGA is an incredible player. No doubt.

[Wolfgang630]

Other than Randle, who also got shut out in the 2nd half, nobody else had a good game for the Wolves. That’s good news for Minnesota.


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It’s not good news because some of them haven’t played good at all during the whole playoffs like Donte for example. That’s not going to change now. They had so many days off and some of them still can’t shoot. OKC has this in the bag

[Raps in 4]

Jordan averaged 10 FTA per game in the playoffs. Just so we’re all on the same page.

Did he also grab defenders arms and then collapse to the ground for no reason?
Or push off defenders then kick them on his jumper while snapping his head back when they try to get back in the play to contest?
Just so we are on the same page

Thoughts?
https://youtube.com/shorts/eulB5MtYTXI?si=PHD5aYTHTOgb7RVR

Jordan and LeBron are two of the most prolific foul baiters in history. I always find it funny how fans never criticize them for it.

[CIN-C-STAR]

Any other analysis is a waste of words:

Minnesota has to make 40-50% of these mostly open kick out threes to hang with OKC. That’s the offense they’re going to get vs. this defense. Don’t make them, don’t win. Simple.

This game they made like 20% of them and got smoked.

I agree with this but at the same time OKC hit over 50% of their 3s tonight even w Shai going 0-4 even though they’ve not shot w particularly well all playoffs.
Role player 3-point shooting is probably the most important game-to-game variable in any basketball game in 2025.
I feel like people might be overreacting to the shooting variability of a single game here, but I guess we’ll see.

[syrus3]

The refs might as well put on an OKC uniform. It’s atrocious at this point.

[Slade3]

Minny implosion.

Denver could end up being OKC's toughest series of the playoffs.

SGA shoots under 40% for the fifth time in this postseason. OKC is 4-1 in those games and the only loss came in OT.

Denver and Jokic lost. Learn to deal with it.

They did? I didn't realize that.

We will see if that was OKC's toughest test.

Denver and Jokic lost. Learn to deal with it.

[Chuck Everett]

Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo have to play well every game from here on out. Nickell Alexander-Walker is a lost cause. He's been bad on offense the entire playoffs. I'm not expecting him to all of a sudden learn how to make a basket in the WCF.

[Wingy]

Minnesota needs to figure out how to get Ant more/better looks. 13 shots is not going to cut it.

That 7 minute stretch due to the sprained ankle messed up his offensive rhtyhm.

Ant responds quite well when playing angry and this blowout loss should make him angry. He’ll be better in Game 2.


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What’s he gonna do? Knock up yet another chick?

[Raps in 4]

The refs might as well put on an OKC uniform. It’s atrocious at this point.

OKC only shot 5 more FTs, while shooting 30 fewer 3s.

[Mamba81p]

Jordan averaged 10 FTA per game in the playoffs. Just so we’re all on the same page.

Did he also grab defenders arms and then collapse to the ground for no reason?
Or push off defenders then kick them on his jumper while snapping his head back when they try to get back in the play to contest?
Just so we are on the same page

Thoughts?
https://youtube.com/shorts/eulB5MtYTXI?si=PHD5aYTHTOgb7RVR

There is a difference between getting the calls and flopping like sga. The flopping became part of the sport since europeans came into the league. It was mostly a soccer thing until then.

[Dadouv47]

I legit saw 100+ posts over the last 5-6 years of people mad because NBA teams were not playing good and physical defense anymore...one of the best defenses of all time is playing in 2025 and somehow people are even more pissed.

[Soonercrazy84]

Minny had 0 fast break points

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[HotRocks34]

Denver and Jokic lost. Learn to deal with it.

They did? I didn't realize that.

We will see if that was OKC's toughest test.

Denver and Jokic lost. Learn to deal with it.

User is ignored.

[tamaraw08]

Any other analysis is a waste of words:

Minnesota has to make 40-50% of these mostly open kick out threes to hang with OKC. That’s the offense they’re going to get vs. this defense. Don’t make them, don’t win. Simple.

This game they made like 20% of them and got smoked.

I can imagine Lebron and JJ looking up to heaven and asking God, why? why can't the TWolves miss this so many open 3's when they played the Lakers?
The Lord answered: You idiots, they did missed 86% of 3's in Game 5 and your sorry ass team still lost.

[thelead]

Jordan averaged 10 FTA per game in the playoffs. Just so we’re all on the same page.

Did he also grab defenders arms and then collapse to the ground for no reason?
Or push off defenders then kick them on his jumper while snapping his head back when they try to get back in the play to contest?
Just so we are on the same page

Thoughts?
https://youtube.com/shorts/eulB5MtYTXI?si=PHD5aYTHTOgb7RVR

I don't see a player flopping and baiting in that video.

[tmorgan]

Any other analysis is a waste of words:

Minnesota has to make 40-50% of these mostly open kick out threes to hang with OKC. That’s the offense they’re going to get vs. this defense. Don’t make them, don’t win. Simple.

This game they made like 20% of them and got smoked.

I agree with this but at the same time OKC hit over 50% of their 3s tonight even w Shai going 0-4 even though they’ve not shot w particularly well all playoffs.
Role player 3-point shooting is probably the most important game-to-game variable in any basketball game in 2025.
I feel like people might be overreacting to the shooting variability of a single game here, but I guess we’ll see.

OKC took 21 threes (made 11). Minnesota took 51 threes (made 15).

It won’t matter what percentage OKC shoots from three if they don’t need it to score. Be negative or positive, call it foul-baiting or working the defense, OKC has more options. Unless Minnesota can come up with a plan to get quality twos (a healthier Ant would help), the only chance they have is to make their open and semi-open threes. That’s the shot they could get.

[Chuck Everett]

Minny had 0 fast break points

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Thunder don't really turn the ball over, especially live-ball. Kind of hard to get out in transition otherwise.

[Wolfgang630]

I legit saw 100+ posts over the last 5-6 years of people mad because NBA teams were not playing good and physical defense anymore...one of the best defenses of all time is playing in 2025 and somehow people are even more pissed.

You can’t play even half physical defense and FTA gets gifted free throws

[azcatz11]

Other than Randle, who also got shut out in the 2nd half, nobody else had a good game for the Wolves. That’s good news for Minnesota.


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Is it? They have no shot at winning this series and you know it