The Oklahoma City Thunder took a giant leap forward on Sunday night, dismantling the defending champion Denver Nuggets 125-93 in a decisive Game 7 to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2016.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with a brilliant 35-point performance, while Jalen Williams added 24 points in a game that firmly cemented the Thunder's status as a legitimate title contender. It was a defining moment for one of the youngest rosters in NBA history, a team that finished the regular season with a league-best 68-14 record and became the youngest squad ever to win 60 or more games.
The Thunder will now host the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves in the West Finals beginning Tuesday, marking a return to the league’s biggest stage for a franchise that has spent years rebuilding from the Kevin Durant-Russell Westbrook era.
Oklahoma City’s composure in a high-stakes Game 7 was striking. After falling behind by 11 early in the first quarter, the Thunder responded with a dominant second period, outscoring Denver 39-20 and taking a 60-46 lead into halftime. The game turned lopsided quickly from there, with Oklahoma City controlling every aspect on both ends of the floor.
Head coach Mark Daigneault praised his team’s ability to stay focused under the bright lights.
“There’s not many games you wake up and know you’ll remember for the rest of your life, and Game 7 is one of them,” Daigneault said. “To be able to focus through that and perform the way these guys did today was very impressive.”
Nikola Jokic finished with 20 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists for the Nuggets, but the reigning MVP couldn’t will his team past a relentless Thunder squad.
Aaron Gordon, who had been a critical contributor throughout Denver’s playoff run and hit the game-winner in Game 1 of the series, played through a strained hamstring and logged eight points and 11 rebounds in 24 gritty minutes.
“What he played with today — I don’t know many people that would even attempt to go out there and run up and down,” said Nuggets interim coach David Adelman. “He did it in Game 7, on the road, and it was one of the most incredible things I’ve ever seen.”
Tensions rose early in the third quarter when Gordon was assessed a flagrant-1 foul for elbowing Gilgeous-Alexander in the face. SGA calmly knocked down both free throws, and a Jalen Williams jumper on the next possession extended the lead to 20.
Moments later, rookie Cason Wallace brought the crowd to its feet with a thunderous dunk over Jokic in transition, giving Oklahoma City a 78-57 advantage and sending a clear message that the night belonged to them.
From there, the Thunder never looked back.
“We’re better now than we were at the beginning of the series, and it’s because of them,” Daigneault said of the defending champs. “They pushed us to the limit.”
Now, the Thunder face their next challenge — a physical and defensively elite Minnesota Timberwolves team — with confidence, momentum, and a young core that no longer looks like the future of the NBA, but very much its present.
