Both the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder are hoping to get back to winning when they face each other on Tuesday in a Western Conference Group B game as part of the NBA Cup.
The Thunder won their first NBA Cup game on Friday, defeating Phoenix, and are tied for the top spot in West Group B with the Los Angeles Lakers. Meanwhile, San Antonio lost its opening Cup game on Friday to the Lakers, and the Spurs are still looking for their first win in five Cup games since the tournament started in 2023.
Oklahoma City is coming off a 121-119 loss to Dallas on Sunday, which ended their three-game winning streak. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 36 points on 13-of-19 shooting and helped lead a late comeback attempt by hitting a 3-pointer with 25 seconds left to make it a one-possession game.
He also forced a jump ball, won possession, and was fouled with less than five seconds left. He made one free throw, missed the second intentionally, but the Thunder couldn’t hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to win.
Oklahoma City struggled with rebounding, getting out-rebounded 53-29, including 18 offensive rebounds. The Thunder were also missing injured forward Chet Holmgren for the fourth straight game.
Holmgren is expected to be out until at least February with a hip injury. The team has had to use a smaller lineup due to injuries to Holmgren and other players, including Isaiah Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams.
“We’ve won games without centers,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Now it presents a different challenge, and you have to do certain things to win a basketball game that you might not necessarily have to do when you have a center.”
Jalen Williams added 27 points, Luguentz Dort had 18, and Dillon Jones scored 12 in the loss to Dallas.
“We’re not trying to survive,” Jalen Williams said. “We’re going out there to win every game. Obviously, we want our bigs back and to be healthy, but we’re not victims.”
The Spurs are heading home after a trip to Dallas, where they lost 110-93 to the Mavericks. San Antonio played without forward Victor Wembanyama (knee contusion) and guard Devin Vassell (right foot injury management). Wembanyama is doubtful for Tuesday’s game.
The Spurs struggled without their two key players, especially in the third quarter, where they were outscored by 20 points and never recovered. Zach Collins led the Spurs with a season-high 20 points, and Sandro Mamukelashvili added 14. Julian Champagnie scored 13, Stephon Castle posted 12, and Chris Paul added 11. The Spurs have lost two straight after winning two in a row earlier this season.
“We’ve had some inconsistent good moments,” said Spurs interim coach Mitch Johnson. “The problem is the inconsistency of it. So we’re just continuing to try to put together a consistent 48 minutes and get healthy, and hopefully, we can catch a rhythm here.”
The status of Vassell for Tuesday’s game is still uncertain. He would likely come off the bench if he plays.
San Antonio’s next three games, and four of their next five, will be at home. For the Thunder, Tuesday’s game marks the start of a tough stretch, as they will play nine of their next 11 games on the road.
