When last the Thunder played a home playoff game with as high a stakes as Sunday’s Game 7 against the Nuggets, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was still a prepster at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Jalen Williams? Just finishing up his freshman year of high school in Gilbert, Arizona.
Alex Caruso? Preparing for an NBA Draft that would lead to a G League stint in OKC.
In other words, it’s been a minute.
But even though Oklahoma City hasn’t hosted as big a game as this since the Thunder-Warriors Game 6 of the 2016 Western Conference finals, we still know that the deciding game in these Western Conference semifinals promises to be grand theater. Game 7s, after all, are one of the most unique things in all of sports, so there’ll be all sorts of things to keep an eye on, both on the court and off.
So, as you prepare for Game 7 between the Thunder and Nuggets, here are seven things to watch.
Nikola Jokic
As if you could keep your eyes off the Nuggets’ superstar.
He’s the best basketball player on the planet right now, and that’s no disrespect to SGA or any other great player. Jokic is just at a different level because of how he combines big-man size with small-guy skills.
And in the postseason, he’s taken his play even higher — Jokic leads all players in these playoffs in points, rebounds, assists and steals.
The Thunder has rotated different defenders on Jokic. Isaiah Hartenstein and his bulk. Chet Holmgren and his length. Jaylin Williams and his grit. All have had good moments against Jokic and not-so-good ones, and hey, that’s to be expected. He’s going to score. And assist. And rebound.
But the thing the Thunder needs to avoid is sending Jokic to the free-throw line. In two of the Nuggets’ three wins in this series, Jokic has shot 12 or more free throws. In two of their three losses, he’s shot five.
The Thunder has way better odds of winning if Jokic doesn’t shoot a bunch of free throws.
— Jenni Carlson
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
The Thunder can’t win Game 7 without the man that got it here. Without SGA delivering in some fashion — across a game, in the clutch.
The MVP favorite has improved as the series has aged. From attempting to understand Denver’s bevy of coverages, to solving them in clutch time, to flowing into his baskets in Game 6.
He’s one of just three players on this Thunder squad to experience a Game 7. With the way Denver has set out to defend him, his competence is a baseline. In a close out game, a star must be a star.
— Joel Lorenzi
OKC’s presence of mind
Game 7 won’t be played much differently than any other game, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault assured.
“Once the ball goes up, it’s the same game,” he said Saturday afternoon. “If you want to test that, watch any Game 7. It’s not like there’s a different game being played.”
Game 7 will wind down to execution like most other games. Hustle, intangibles, shotmaking. The most significant game to be played in years in Oklahoma City at least has those things in common with previous games.
But whether the Thunder feels that way to its core, and whether that presence of mind truly plays out on Sunday, is worth watching for.
— Joel Lorenzi
Jalen Williams’ scoring production
Williams averaged 21.6 points during the regular season on 51.3% shooting from the field and 38.2% shooting from deep.
The first-time All-Star has struggled in this series, though. He’s averaging 16.5 points on 33.7% shooting from the field and 21.2% shooting from deep.
Williams is dealing with a nagging wrist injury, which has surely played a role in his inconsistent scoring. Despite stuffing the stat sheet in Game 6 with 10 assists and seven rebounds, he finished with just six points.
If OKC wants to keep its season alive, it’ll need guys to take pressure off of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. A strong performance by Williams would go a long way.
— Justin Martinez
Thunder’s home-court advantage
OKC is 4-1 at home these playoffs.
One advantage is the Paycom Center crowd, which has fueled numerous Thunder runs. The biggest example was OKC’s comeback win in Game 5.
The rims have also given the Thunder a boost.
OKC is shooting 39.8% from deep at home these playoffs, which ranks first among the eight second-round teams. But it’s only shooting 25.9% from deep on the road, which ranks last.
— Justin Martinez
Aaron Gordon’s status
The Nuggets forward sustained a left hamstring strain near the end of Game 6, and as ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported, Gordon’s status for Game 7 is “in doubt.”
Whether Gordon plays or not could have massive implications. He’s been one of the stars of these playoffs. Gordon hit the game-winning 3-pointer in the Nuggets’ Game 1 win against the Thunder, and he made a late 3-pointer in Game 3 to help force overtime in another of the Nuggets’ wins.
Gordon has averaged 14.5 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists in the series.
If Gordon can’t go, expect to see a lot more of Peyton Watson and Julian Strawther in Game 7.
— Joe Mussatto
Could Isaiah Joe be an X-factor?
Isaiah Joe is due.
He’s 4-of-14 from 3-point range this series, and all four of those makes came in the Thunder’s Game 2 blowout win.
Joe has only played nine minutes per game in this series. He can’t wait around to find his rhythm. He needs to come out firing. Once that first one drops, Joe is bound to hit a couple more.
Maybe he can be for the Thunder in Game 7 what Julian Strawther was for the Nuggets in Game 6.
— Joe Mussatto
Game 7: Thunder vs. Nuggets
TIPOFF: 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Paycom Center (ABC)
