The Oklahoma City Thunder seek a 60th win in a season for the first time in 12 years when they visit the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night.
Having already clinched the Western Conference regular-season title and the top seed in next month’s playoffs, the Thunder (59-12) get an opportunity to coast home while at the same time secure a spot in franchise lore.
Four teams in franchise history have won at least 60 games, a list headed by the Seattle SuperSonics with 64 in 1995-96. The SuperSonics also won 63 games in 1993-94 and 61 in 1997-98 before moving to Oklahoma City following the 2008 season.
The Oklahoma City era record for wins was set during the 2012-13 season, when the Kevin Durant/Russell Westbrook-led squad went 60-22 en route to reaching the Western semifinals.
The Thunder have given members of the 1995-96 SuperSonics team no indication that they’ll be doing any champagne popping next month. They have won six in a row to get within five victories of the record. Oklahoma City has 11 games remaining in the regular season.
The Thunder opened a two-game California swing with a 103-101 triumph over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday night, Most Valuable Player candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 26 points and Isaiah Hartenstein recorded a double-double in the win.
Alex Caruso chipped in with 14 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals in a rare start. He noted it’s important for the Thunder’s supporting cast to continue to increase its productivity as playoff opponents focus on stopping Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams.
Holmgren (sore hip) and Williams (strained hip) both sat out the game in Los Angeles.
“That’s probably the most important thing for us as a team: Everybody stepping into their own whenever the time calls for it,” Caruso said. “You know what you’re gonna get from (Gilgeous-Alexander); you know what you’re gonna get from (Williams). There’s always opportunity for someone to step up and be aggressive, and that’s one of the luxuries of this team. You have so many guys that are skilled, versatile and can play.”
In what could be a preview of the first round of the playoffs, the Thunder have dominated the Kings in two previous matchups, winning 130-109 on the road and 144-110 at home. Tuesday’s meeting completes the season series.
Sacramento has no such luxury to coast or rest players, especially after it has lost three straight contests in the middle of a seven-game homestand that was supposed to aid its playoff hopes.
The Kings, currently ninth in the Western Conference, fell 113-95 to the Boston Celtics on the front end of a back-to-back Monday. The result dropped them within a half-game of both the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns.
Kings coach Doug Christie says identifying his team’s problems are easy: Both ends of the court. The Celtics burned the hosts for 19 3-pointers on Monday, one game after the Kings had made just nine of 38 (24 percent) from beyond the arc in a loss to Milwaukee.
“To beat teams like this that are really, really good,” he said of the Bucks, Celtics and now Thunder, “there has to be a simplicity in your approach and a consistency in your effort and how you play the game.”
-Field Level Media
