The Oklahoma City Thunder, the top seed in the Western Conference, are one win away from punching their ticket to the conference finals of the 2025 NBA playoffs. But the Denver Nuggets will not go quietly and will try to hold court in Denver for Game 6 on Thursday night. OKC took a 3-2 series lead over the Nuggets with a thrilling 112-105 win on Tuesday. It’s the first lead in the series for the Thunder, who have won two straight against Denver.
To take care of business in Game 5, the Thunder outscored the Nuggets 34-19 in the fourth quarter as MVP favorite Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points. On the other side, Denver’s Nikola Jokić led all scorers with 44, including an incredible fadeaway 3-pointer over the outstretched arm of Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren late in the fourth. But Jokić didn’t get much help as he accounted for 17 of his team’s 40 made field goals.
For Oklahoma City, Gilgeous-Alexander got plenty of help from his supporting cast as Jalen Williams (18), Isaiah Hartenstein (15), Holmgren (14), Alex Caruso (13) and Luguentz Dort (12) all scored in double-figures.
The Thunder had no trouble in the first round, sweeping the Memphis Grizzlies to advance. Gilgeous-Alexander didn’t even shoot all that well in the first round (40.2% from the floor and 25% from 3), but he still averaged a team-high 27.8 points per game. SGA is trying to lead the Thunder to their first conference finals trip since 2016.
The Nuggets, meanwhile, needed all seven games to get past the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round. Jokić averaged a triple-double in the series (24.0 points, 11.6 rebounds and 10.1 assists), and Jamal Murray added 22.9 points per game. The Nuggets are in the second round for the sixth time in the last seven years, and got here in 2025 after making a coaching change days before the end of the regular season. Interim coach David Adelman, who replaced Michael Malone, now has more postseason wins than regular-season wins.
Thunder vs. Nuggets scores, schedule
Game 1: Nuggets 121, Thunder 119
Game 2: Thunder 149, Nuggets 106
Game 3: Nuggets 113, Thunder 104 (OT)
Game 4: Thunder 92, Nuggets 87
Game 5: Thunder 112, Nuggets 105 (Oklahoma City leads, 3-2)
Game 6: Thursday, May 15 | Nuggets vs. Thunder | 8:30 ET, ESPN/fubo
*Game 7: Sunday, May 18 | Thunder vs. Nuggets | 3:30 ET, ABC/fubo
Thunder vs. Nuggets odds
Odds via DraftKings
Game 6 odds: Thunder -5, O/U: 216.5
Series odds: Thunder -1200, Nuggets +750
CBS Sports will provide key updates below throughout the Thunder vs. Nuggets second-round series.
