The Oklahoma City Thunder and their reigning league MVP have seen this movie before. They hope the ending is the same as it was in last year’s championship season.
The Thunder tied their best start in franchise history with a 137-106 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on November 2, pushing their record to 7-0. That mark was set last year, as Oklahoma City rode a scorching start to the NBA’s best record and the team’s first Larry O’Brien trophy.
The Thunder will face the Los Angeles Clippers at the Intuit Dome on November 4 with a chance to set a new franchise mark to open a season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will square off with the team that traded him in 2019.
Thunder Tie Best Start In Franchise History
Oklahoma City is a perfect 7-0 to start the season and is the only unbeaten team left in the NBA. The Thunder have been able to rely on Gilgeous-Alexander and their championship pedigree to carry them through the early part of the season.
Gilgeous-Alexander is shouldering the offense as he did in 2024-25, averaging 33.6 points and shooting 52.6% from the field through his first seven games. He turned in a typical performance in a 125-124 win over the Houston Rockets on opening night, dropping 35 points and hitting a game-tying shot with 2.6 seconds left to send the contest to overtime. Gilgeous-Alexander followed that up with a 55-point game in a 141-135 win over the Indiana Pacers two nights later, as the Thunder prevailed again in double overtime.
Oklahoma City has won seven in a row to begin the season while playing mostly without three of their starters from 2024-25. All-NBA forward Jalen Williams still has not played as he recovers from offseason wrist surgery, and defensive anchors Alex Caruso and Chet Holmgren have missed three games each. Luguentz Dort has also missed a game. Reserve guards Ajay Mitchell, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins have all taken advantage of increased minutes and are averaging double figures.
SGA Faces Former Team
As the Thunder go for their best start in franchise history, Gilgeous-Alexander will face a familiar foe. The Clippers traded him and Danilo Gallinari six years ago as part of a blockbuster deal that sent Paul George to Los Angeles and five first-round picks to Oklahoma City.
At this point, it’s safe to say the Thunder won the deal. Gilgeous-Alexander had one of the greatest single seasons in NBA history in 2024-25, becoming the fourth player to win the scoring title, league MVP and Finals MVP in the same year. The Clippers reached the Western Conference Finals once with George (2021) before the nine-time All-Star opted out of his contract and signed with the Philadelphia 76ers last year.
The Thunder dominated the Clippers in their title-winning season, going a perfect 4-0 while averaging 114.5 points per game. Gilgeous Alexander averaged 31.3 points and 8.5 assists in the four games against his former team. Oklahoma City and its superstar guard will look to keep their dominance over their Western Conference rival going tonight.
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