The Western Conference Finals open Monday, May 18, with the Oklahoma City Thunder hosting the San Antonio Spurs at 8:30 p.m. ET — and the Thunder arrive without a loss. Oklahoma City has gone 8-0 this postseason, sweeping the Suns and Lakers to reach the conference finals as the reigning champion and the No. 1 seed at 64-18.
The matchup
The Spurs (62-20, No. 2 seed) took a more contested route, beating the Timberwolves and Trail Blazers while dropping four games along the way — including a 126-97 Game 5 rout that closed out Minnesota. The most useful number heading in: San Antonio won the regular-season series 4-1. The Spurs' template was to pack the paint and choke off driving lanes for back-to-back MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who averaged 31.1 points and 6.6 assists this season.
Wembanyama's first conference finals
This is the series Victor Wembanyama's career has been pointed at. He and Chet Holmgren finished first and second in Defensive Player of the Year voting, and Wembanyama has averaged better than 22 points, 11 rebounds, and close to four blocks a night this postseason. The Spurs built their roster — and the league reorganized its expectations — around the idea that he could eventually stand between Oklahoma City and a repeat. That test is now.
The stakes are historic in a specific way: no NBA team has won back-to-back titles since the 2017-18 Warriors. The Thunder are two series from ending that drought. The Spurs are the most credible obstacle they have faced, precisely because San Antonio already proved during the regular season that it has the personnel and the scheme to make Gilgeous-Alexander work for everything.
What to watch
Two questions decide the series. Can Oklahoma City's defense, which has smothered everyone so far, contain a 7-foot-4 problem it cannot scheme away the way it did Phoenix and Los Angeles? And can the Spurs' half-court offense keep pace with a Thunder team averaging 119 points a game once the possessions tighten? Game 1 in Oklahoma City is the first data point — and the Spurs' 4-1 regular-season edge means the favorite is not as safe as an 8-0 record suggests.
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