Stiles Points: OKC Thunder Remain Consistently Great

Wednesday, the Oklahoma City Thunder continued to be uncommon. They continued to be an anomaly. They continued to be great.

Even after 68 wins in the regular season and a first-round series sweep of the No. 8-seeded Memphis Grizzlies, the OKC Thunder faced questions. Were they battle-tested enough? Were they too young? Were the lights too bright? Could their regular-season success translate to the postseason?

OKC answered those questions tonight, with a 124-94 beatdown of the Minnesota Timberwolves to earn its first NBA Finals trip since 2012 and its second Western Conference Championship.

The second youngest No. 1 seed in NBA history (only ahead of last year's Thunder squad) and youngest team in this playoff field learned lessons and applied answers throughout this postseason en route to the NBA Finals.

After the Denver Nuggets pushed the Oklahoma City Thunder to a Game 7, the Thunder steamrolled that series-clincher in similar fashion as tonight and didn't look back. OKC made quick work of Minnesota, beating them in five games in a lot of ways, thanks to the tune-up of that Denver series.

They have picked up those battle scares, those experiences and proved to not be too young.

The Oklahoma City Thunder's historic defense went up a notch in the playoffs, shutting down Minnesota from the jump. OKC forced four turnovers in two minutes, dejecting the Timberwolves with each passing stop. The slumped shoulders, the flinging of the arms, and the frustration spoke volumes as the Thunder ran away with this game.

"Can't do nothing but tip my hat to those guys. They came ready," Timberwolves All-Star Anthony Edwards said following this game.

That they did, the 11-3 run to start this game was all Oklahoma City needed to punch its ticket to the NBA Finals. That quick start not only sent the Paycom Center into Bedlam but forced the Timberwolves into submission.

Minnesota turned it over 21 times in this tilt, shot a dreadful 41% from the floor, 35% from 3-point land and 80% at the charity stripe. Shooting splits that were a sight for sore eyes in the first half as the Timberwolves posted a first-half split of 31/27/75.

Oklahoma City harassed, hounded, hindered, hacked and halted Minnesota's offensive attack as the Timberwolves were dead on arrival, unable to counter or match the Thunder's defensive intensity with no ability to generate consistent offense. This was a theme all season for the Bricktown Ballers.

The Thunder saw Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the League's MVP and now Western Conference Finals MVP, have his fingerprints all over this game. One of the best players in the world dominated the Timberwolves' typically stout defense. Getting to his spots at will, breaking down the Timberwolves' point-of-attack defenders and freeing himself up for jaw-dropping buckets with dishing out dazzling dimes.

Gilgeous-Alexander scored or assisted on 24 of the Thunder's first 26 points, in complete control of the game as a table setter and go-to scorer en route to 34 points, seven rebounds, eight assists and two steals while shooting 56% from the floor in a close-out Western Conference Finals game. Special and historic stuff, which is par for the course for the superstar.

Lopsided losses have become commonplace for Oklahoma City, they now have the double-digit wins for a full NBA season (regular season and postseason) in league history with their 61st such win. Shoving aside the 2017 Golden State Warriors, who accomplished 60 double-digit wins.

This entire season has been consistent, now, everyone is forced to buy into how great the 2024-25 campaign continues to be for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

OKC has an all-time great defense, an all-time great scorer and the best supporting cast in the league. The Thunder are four wins away from their first NBA Championship.

"The mental toughness by the team was great. The opportunity to close the series out, obviously up 3-1, it's easy to drift ahead, and we didn't do that at all. We just played the next possession and did a great job to stack them up," Head Coach Mark Daigneault said following Game 5.

This entire season –– and rebuild –– has been built on stacking days and having a 0-0 mindset as Daigneault will remind you every chance he gets. That is part of the Thunder's consistency.

Nothing that the Thunder did tonight is new, it is a replication of regular-season success. Dominating in transition, having the best scorer in the league and rostering a back-breaking defense that never lets matchups settle into a game.

Not many elected to believe in this young Thunder squad. They moved the goal post, tossed out cliches and stuck Oklahoma City at the kids' table to have the same tired old conversations around tired old stars throughout the 82-game season and much of the postseason. That never bothered OKC; They stayed the course and remained consistently great.

Song of the Day: Don't Stop Me Now by Queen