Two of the top three NBA teams in net rating go to work on national TV Wednesday night, with the Oklahoma City Thunder (first at plus-12.4) visiting the Boston Celtics (third at plus-9.0). College basketball towers over mid-March, but if there’s one pro game to watch this week, it’s this one right here.
How to watch Oklahoma City Thunder at Boston Celtics
Five reasons to watch:
1. This is a potential Finals teaser. OKC looks sheerly dominant atop the West while reigning champion Boston is in a groove as the East’s No. 2 seed. The Thunder are beating the brakes off opponents — they open this week with 42 double-digit wins and lead the Western Conference. Because games are so routinely reduced to blowouts, the Thunder have also played the fewest clutch minutes in the league — ahead of the historically futile Washington Wizards. The Celtics’ core has played in two of the last three Finals.
2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues his MVP campaign. Each national TV look is increasingly important for the trophy race, which has narrowed between the Canadian superstar and Denver’s Nikola Jokić. In his last eight games, SGA is averaging around 37 points, six rebounds and seven assists on 54/46/90 shooting splits. Watching his recent 51-piece against a stout Houston defense was like getting a pack of all-orange Skittles (or, you know, whatever flavor you’re partial to).
3. These are the only two teams with top-five ratings on both ends of the floor this season. Boston is second on offense; OKC is No. 1 defensively. This should yield proficient and competitive basketball.
4. The Celtics just showed out on primetime. They beat the ascending Lakers on Saturday, with Jayson Tatum earning the Mike Breen “bang!” call. Tatum finished two dimes shy of a 40-point triple-double, while Jaylen Brown scored 31. Boston also looked good dispatching Denver on ABC earlier in the month.
5. The parquet court is one of pro basketball’s enduring aesthetic achievements. It gives the proceedings a refined, old-school boost and forges a distant throughline to the Bill Russell days. The original oak flooring hosted Celtics games from 1946-99.
Last time out: Jan. 5 — OKC locked in an impressive home win, 105-92, off the strength of hellacious defense. The Celtics may as well done dizzy bat races before getting into their offense, shooting just 36.5 percent from the floor and 19.6 percent on 3s. The Thunder hit 16 3s and forced 16 turnovers.
Law Murray’s latest power rankings:
OKC (2) — “The Thunder ‘only’ have one double-digit win streak this season, and even their 15-game run that started in December was interrupted by an NBA Cup loss. Like Cleveland, the Thunder maintained a strong defense. And also like Cleveland, Oklahoma City showed that it’s just as good on the other side of the ball. This is now a top-five offense, partly because MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander creates buckets for himself and his teammates without turning the ball over (only 2.2 turnovers per game since late January).”
Boston (3) —”As good as Derrick White was last season for the Celtics, he has arguably been even better and more necessary this year. White makes more 3s than ever, inching closer to 40 percent, and his ability to make plays without turning the ball over has been crucial with Jrue Holiday missing several games. Winning the turnover battle went a long way toward the Celtics controlling their rematch with the Los Angeles Lakers over the weekend.”
Starting five of players to wear both jerseys:
- Dennis Schröder
- Gordon Hayward
- Jeff Green
- Al Horford
- Kendrick Perkins
Updated Finals odds for each team
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(Photo by Zach Beeker / NBAE via Getty Images)
