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WATCH: Thunder Advance To West Finals With Dominant Game 7 Win
Vivek Jacob is a freelance sports writer with over seven years experience. During this time, he has written for outlets including The Athletic, Yahoo Sports, Sportsnet, CBC, and Complex. Primarily covering the NBA, Vivek also covers tennis, soccer, and cricket.
All posts by Vivek JacobUpdated44 mins ago on May 18, 2025
The Oklahoma City Thunder have advanced to the West Finals after crushing the Denver Nuggets 125-93 in Game 7 of the second round.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 35 points and Jalen Williams supported him with 24, but it was the Thunder bench that was hugely influential in the win.
Oklahoma City started the game looking nervous as Denver jumped out to an early double-digit lead. It was the entrance of Alex Caruso, Cason Wallace, and Aaron Wiggins that shifted the tide completely.
Caruso’s influence on the game was massive as he was tasked with defending reigning MVP Nikola Jokic and did a tremendous job. The Thunder as a team forced 22 turnovers and scored 37 points off them.
Aaron Gordon stole the headlines early with a heroic effort to play and start after being diagnosed with a Grade 2 hamstring strain. It certainly gave his Nuggets a boost in the first quarter. Gordon looked clearly limited in his movement but played smart positional defense. He also primarily jumped off just his right leg for rebounds and finished with 11 of them.
It was as close to a modern day Willis Reed effort except it didn’t translate to a win.
The Thunder will now play the Minnesota Timberwolves in the West Finals beginning on Tuesday.
Where Do The Nuggets Go From Here?
It has to be said that the decision to fire Mike Malone just before the regular season ended reaped rewards. It’s hard to envision a team filled with tension and discomfort finding a way past a strong Los Angeles Clippers team. To then follow that up by pushing the 68-win Thunder to seven games is an impressive effort.
Michael Porter Jr.’s injury should have had him out four to six weeks. Gordon will now need at least a month to recover. When healthy, the big pieces you need to win a championship are in place. What needs to improve is the depth.
The likes of Peyton Watson and Julian Strawther need to take a big step this summer. There may need to be consideration over whether Porter Jr. can be used to acquire multiple depth pieces and whether that’s worth it.
Will David Adelman remain as head coach? That remains to be seen as well.
