The highly anticipated matchup between the NBA’s conference leaders — the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Oklahoma City Thunder — lived up to the hype and then some Wednesday night in Cleveland.
Both teams entered the game riding double-digit win streaks, and the game played out like a heavyweight tilt. The score was rarely beyond two possessions throughout, but a late Cavs run that featured clutch shooting and a few big stops secured a 129-122 win for the East’s top seed.
Cleveland was able to move its win streak to 11 despite Donovan Mitchell scoring only 11 points on 3-of-16 shooting. Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley picked up the slack, combining for 46 points and 22 rebounds.
The loss snapped a 15-game win streak for the Thunder, who were in the game until the final minute despite foul trouble for star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and center Isaiah Hartenstein early in the second half. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with a game-high 31 points and nine assists, while Hartenstein finished two assists shy of a triple-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
The teams will meet again Jan. 16 in Oklahoma City, but first let’s take a closer look at tonight’s game. What did we learn about each team tonight? What should we be looking for in the rematch? And will we be seeing this matchup in June in the NBA Finals?
Our NBA Insiders Tim Bontemps, Kevin Pelton and Brian Windhorst break down the marquee matchup of the 2024-25 season so far.
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Darius Garland’s dagger sends Cavs fans into a frenzy
Cleveland fans erupt after Darius Garland’s clutch basket puts the game away vs. the Thunder.
What did we learn about the Cavaliers in this game?
Bontemps: That they belong. Even after the game, Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson acknowledged there were doubts about Cleveland’s ability to win this game, and whether this team is truly as good as its record shows. But in a game in which Mitchell went 3-for-16, Cleveland was able to beat an Oklahoma City team that had won 15 games in a row and is seen as a true title contender. After this game, the doubts about Cleveland being in that category should no longer exist.
Pelton: Max Strus gives them another playmaker. It’s hard to say the Cavaliers had missed Strus this season, given they were already 23-4 by the time he made his season debut Dec. 20, but his five 3-pointers and five assists off the bench Wednesday were difference-making. Strus was on the court down the stretch, giving Cleveland a bit more upside than with starting small forward Dean Wade and more strength than with sixth man Caris LeVert.
Windhorst: There is no true winner or loser in this game. Both these teams displayed a mastery of their systems. The execution in the third quarter of this game, which OKC won 43-41, was perhaps the most technically splendid 12 minutes of midseason basketball I’ve ever witnessed. The Cavs walking away with the win is meaningful, but they would admit there is very little space between these teams. Cleveland’s ability to run their offense and generate their standard amount of open looks with their tight passing and spacing against such a great defense probably was most rewarding for them.
What did we learn about the Thunder in this game?
Bontemps: That Chet Holmgren remains this team’s second-most-important player. Cleveland absolutely dominated this game in the paint, with Allen and Mobley going for 46 points on 17-for-21 shooting on 2-point shots. Hartenstein is an excellent big man, but he’s the only true center aside from Holmgren in the Thunder’s core rotation. If OKC had them on the court together in this game, it could have made the difference.
Pelton: They can survive a stretch without the MVP front-runner. Up one point when Gilgeous-Alexander went to the bench with four fouls midway through the third quarter, Oklahoma City went down six at one point but rallied to tie the game by the time Gilgeous-Alexander returned nearly five minutes later. Despite Gilgeous-Alexander’s low foul rate, the Thunder will likely face a similar situation at some point in the postseason and can reference this moment as an example of what they can do without their star player.
Windhorst: The Thunder dearly missed Holmgren in this matchup. As well as the the Cavs’ bigs played — Allen played his second brillant game in the past week, including outplaying Anthony Davis on New Year’s Eve — it was hard not to picture how things would be different if OKC could match the Cavs double-big look. OKC is 15-2 in the last 17 games, including the NBA Cup loss to Milwaukee. Size was a big factor in both, and they have the fix already on their roster.
What’s one thing we should watch for in next week’s rematch?
Bontemps: The chess match between Cleveland’s dominance on the glass and Oklahoma City’s typical dominance in the turnover battle. The Thunder are obsessed with winning the possession game, and they usually do. In this game, both teams had 90 shots but the Cavaliers shot an extra 10 free throws. Oklahoma City forced 15 turnovers for 21 points, but Cleveland forced 19 for 21. And Cleveland’s edges in points in the paint (60 to 54) and second-chance points (24 to 20) were the difference. The same formulas will apply next week.
Pelton: Better defense. In practice, it’s not really true that the best offenses beat the best defenses. Since the 1996-97 season, top-five offenses have averaged almost precisely the league’s average points per possession in matchups against top-five defenses. If we limit that to the No. 1 offense (like Cleveland this season) against the No. 2 defense (Oklahoma City), it’s about 1% better than average. Yet the Cavaliers beat their season-long efficiency, shooting 52% from the field and 42% from 3, while the Thunder (53% from the field, 35.5% on 3s) weren’t far behind. It’s unlikely we’ll see both teams shoot so accurately in Oklahoma City.
Windhorst: I’d be surprised if the Thunder allowed 129 points on their home court. The Cavs were repeatedly able to beat them with the “second pass,” particularly as they peeled out of pick-and-rolls and beat the Oklahoma City help defense around the rim. It led to so many deep entry passes for easy baskets or situations where the Thunder had to foul. I would expect they’d be better prepared for that next week.
Was this a Finals preview?
Bontemps: It might be — which is something I likely wouldn’t have said 24 hours ago. Cleveland showed me an absolute ton in this game. Mobley showed he’s an All-Star lock this season. The Cavaliers took every punch from the Thunder and threw a stronger one back every time. The result was a 32nd win in 36 games. I wrote about the comparisons between this team and the 2014-15 Golden State Warriors ahead of Wednesday’s game — another team that came out of nowhere, was doubted throughout that season, and eventually won a title. I won’t say Cleveland will do that right now, but I will say the Cavaliers are good enough to make it to June.
Pelton: I’d still bet against it at even odds. Projections using ESPN’s Basketball Power Index give these teams the two best chances of making the Finals and yet still show this specific matchup happening just 35% of the time. I’d pick the Boston Celtics over the Cavaliers to win the East. Although the Thunder are the clear favorite in the West, there’s plenty that can happen to change that between now and late May.
Windhorst: I’m not saying a bad word about either of these teams out of respect after watching that display. I’m also not predicting the Finals in January. But I will give them this, there have been more than one championship team I’ve seen over the last two decades that wouldn’t beat these two.
