Thunder Could Sneak Past Play-In to Playoffs
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Oklahoma City continues to ride the hot hand with just a few games left on the 2022-23 slate.
As the season winds down, with fewer chances for teams to move in the standings, the Thunder are in an opposite boat. Each game presents them a chance to climb or drop in the standings with the tightness of the Western Conference.
The Thunder currently sit with a likely chance to play extra basketball, with a shot at either the Play-In or a set seed in the Playoffs.
Prior to the season, OKC wasn’t supposed to be near the playoff race. The Thunder were one of the teams projected to be in the running for the top pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, however as the early season went on it became apparent they were far ahead of their projected pace in their rebuild.
The Thunder blew past their win total projection early and continued to impress the league with the youngest roster. College teams have average roster ages older than that of the Thunder, yet OKC continued to hang around .500 and linger in the Western Conference standings.
For much of the season prior to the All-Star Break the Thunder bounced between the bottom of the Play-In and sitting just outside of it.
With just 12 games left in the season, though, the tides have appeared to turn in the Thunder’s favor, with the picture now looking like a postseason berth is inevitable.
With a 101-100 win over the Clippers on Tuesday, the Thunder are now in seventh place in the Western Conference. They are a half-game out of sixth, which would cement them a playoff series, and a game and a half out of fifth. However, the team still needs to win, as just one game separates them from being outside of the Play-In game.
Currently six teams are within a game of seventh in the west. Meaning the path isn’t set for OKC, yet.
Half of the Thunder’s remaining schedule are games against teams currently stacked up in the log jam of the west. The team has a chance to make a statement to the league and play more basketball after the end of the regular season, even without the 2022 NBA Draft's second overall pick Chet Holmgren.
No matter where OKC ends up, whether in the Play-In, the Playoffs or out of the race entirely, the Thunder have bolted forward in their rebuild and look to continue progressing.
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