Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Answers If Spurs Have Been Thunder's Toughest Opponent
The Oklahoma City Thunder had the opportunity to enter the NBA Finals once again with a Game 6 win. However, the San Antonio Spurs turned out to be much tougher than everyone thought. As Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and OKC got another shot to earn a Finals ticket, the two-time MVP had some praise for his opponents.
The Thunder suffered another blowout in the series with a 118-91 loss. The defeat not only extended the series but also pushed the Western Conference Finals to a winner-take-all finale at Oklahoma's Paycom Center. Very few teams have taken the Thunder to Game 7 in the past two seasons.
Following the heartbreaking loss, SGA was asked if the Spurs stand out from the rest as the "toughest opponents" they've faced. The 27-year-old instead responded by placing his current opponents alongside the former ones. "They're up there for sure. Indiana and Denver were pretty tough," said Shai.
Apart from facing the Thunder, the other similarity all three teams share is taking the defending NBA champions to a seven-game series. OKC faced the Denver Nuggets during last season's NBA Western Conference semifinals. Nikola Jokic and his team also managed to win Game 6 but lost the next fixture.
The Thunder then went on to face the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Finals and eventually lifted the NBA Championship. "Taking us to game 7 probably the common denominator with those groups," SGA said about his three toughest opponents. It took the Thunder another year to face a similar challenge courtesy of the Spurs and Victor Wembanyama.
Shai added, "They've a very tough team, really good team. This late in the season you're gonna play teams with this caliber. There's no surprise. When you're on a playoff run, you run into teams that are very good especially when you get this late." The postseason is now a familiar territory for the Thunder.
However, they once again face a tough challenge. Wembanyama led Game 6 in scoring with 28 points while also adding 10 rebounds. He also leads the series with 141 points through six games. Meanwhile, Shai had a disappointing outing as he only managed to score 15 points. His teammates also struggled to find the rim.
The two-time MVP has scored 131 points in the series while averaging 26.2 points per game. As the Thunder head into the final game, they will need SGA to take the lead. But the biggest obstacle still remains stopping Wemby from scoring.
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This story was originally published May 29, 2026 at 9:31 AM.