Celtics dealt reality check by dogged Thunder defense

Thunder forward Luguentz Dort — a leading candidate for Defensive Player of the Year — explained what led to his team turning the corner at halftime on Sunday.

"We've been getting ourselves into a lot of bad starts. But it's a 48-minute game," Dort told NBA TV. "Whenever we get back into the locker room at halftime, we have time to regroup and we go out there and compete more."

Thunder similarly held the Knicks to just 41 second-half points last Saturday after conceding a 66-54 lead in the first half. 

Sunday's result was a quick reminder that the Celtics, the overwhelming favorites to repeat, could be in for a tough test if they run into the Thunder in June's NBA Finals. The Thunder showed they possess the requisite ingredients to beat the Celtics. Their elite perimeter defense, led by Dort, Cason Wallace and Jaylen Williams, can make life very difficult for Boston's two Jays, as they did on Sunday. Furthermore, the Thunder have the ideal pair of big men in Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren to match up with Porzingis and Horford, and just enough positional size to counter Boston's death lineups.

Most importantly, OKC has a reliable go-to option in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to get them a bucket in timely situations. As has been proven countless times in the playoffs, a team isn't a true title contender without a player who can score in half-court sets. 

SGA led all scorers with 33 points Sunday as the Thunder (30-5) extended their win streak to 15, their longest in franchise history. The previous team record was set by the then-Seattle SuperSonics in 1996.