This is the part of a playoff series where Oklahoma City usually steps on a throat. They stole homecourt, then ran a 76-23 bench-scoring buzzsaw through the Spurs in Game 3 to grab a 2-1 lead. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dropped 26 and the OKC reserves posted the franchise's biggest bench output in a playoff game since the team moved from Seattle. That is the kind of number that breaks an opponent's spirit, not just their rotation.
San Antonio is not dead. Victor Wembanyama matched Shai with 26 in Game 3 and the Spurs are still a plus-21 in the minutes he plays this series, per NBC Sports. The problem is the 29 minutes he sits, where they have been outscored by 38. Coach Mitch Johnson can scheme around a lot of things. He cannot scheme around his MVP candidate needing oxygen.
Injuries make Game 4 even more interesting. Jalen Williams is questionable with a hamstring, and OKC will be without Ajay Mitchell (right soleus strain). The Spurs are basically healthy outside of David Jones Garcia. If Williams is limited or out, the Thunder bench advantage that buried San Antonio on Friday gets a lot less daunting.
- Day-To-DayJalen Williams G — Williams (hamstring) is listed as questionable for Sunday's Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals versus San Antonio, Rylan Stiles of SI.com reports.
- OutAjay Mitchell G — Mitchell won't play in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals versus the Spurs on Sunday due to a right soleus strain, Rylan Stiles of SI.com reports.
- OutThomas Sorber C — The Thunder announced Friday that Sorber has sustained a torn ACL in his right knee during an offseason workout, NBA reporter Marc Stein reports.
- OutDavid Jones Garcia F — Jones Garcia underwent ankle surgery Wednesday and will miss the remainder of the 2025-26 season, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News reports.
The market still thinks this is a coin flip leaning Spurs. Pinnacle has San Antonio -2.5 and -140 on the moneyline, with a total of 220. That is not a number that screams confidence in the home team's ability to actually win the series — it screams "we expect a desperate effort at home one time." Fair enough. A 1-3 hole versus the defending champs is functionally a death sentence, and the Spurs know it.
Watch the first 6 minutes. San Antonio jumped OKC 15-0 to start Game 3 and still lost by 15. If the Spurs land another haymaker early, they need to actually hold it this time, which means getting Wemby legitimate help from the second unit. If they don't, the Thunder roll, this thing goes to Oklahoma City up 3-1, and we start fitting Shai for another ring.