For all the hype coming in, it’s safe to say the Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder delivered a regular season showdown for the ages.
This was the first matchup in NBA history between a team on a 15-game win streak (Thunder) and a 10-game win streak (Cavs). It was also the first interconference game between teams with a win percentage of at least .850 this late into the season. The last and only other time multiple teams had won at least 30 of their first 35 games in the same season was 1971-72 when the Lakers and Bucks accomplished the feat.
The top two teams in the league went toe-to-toe Wednesday night with the Cavs emerging victorious 129-122. Both sides brought their A+ game, eager to show the world that, despite being small market teams, they are worthy of serious attention.
Here are five things we learned:
Splitting Hairs Between The Two Teams
There were 30 lead changes in this game, THIRTY. The game swung back-and-forth throughout, each team refusing to give an inch and exchanging haymaker for haymaker.
Both teams shot over 50 percent from the field, the overall rebounding differential was minimal at 40-38 in favor of the Cavs, and the ball movement was pristine with the Cavs tallying 36 assists on 47 made field goals to the Thunder’s 35 assists on 48 field goals.
Oklahoma City was able to get 21 points off Cleveland’s 15 turnovers while the Cavs got 19 points of the Thunder’s 13 turnovers. Even with the size disparity, Cleveland only wound up winning the points in the paint battle by six.
Best Offense Trumps Best Defense
Billed as a battle of the league’s best offense (Cleveland) against the league’s best defense (Oklahoma City), the Cavs showed tremendous resolve to work its way around and through the Thunder defense.
Oklahoma City came out and did a tremendous job on Donovan Mitchell with his first field goal of the game coming just before the halftime buzzer. The Cavs came in as the best first quarter team in the league but it was OKC that threw the first punch in taking a 32-25 lead on the strength of their defense.
Cleveland’s response was emphatic. Scoring a combined 78 points in the second and third quarters against this Thunder defense despite getting little from Mitchell will certainly serve as a confidence booster and reminder that there is plenty of ammo beyond their leading scorer to get the job done against anyone.
Donovan Mitchell gets his first points of the night with a SLAM 😤
Cavs lead the Thunder 62-59 at the half on ESPN 👀 pic.twitter.com/n1XjGulUzf
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 9, 2025
Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley were absolutely immense in the first half, Allen in particular having his way inside and finishing the game with 25 points on 9-of-11 shooting, 11 rebounds, six assists, three steals and a block.
Mobley showed no fear in attacking whoever was in front of him including Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein, scoring a crucial bucket in the clutch to help put the game to bed. He finished with 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting, 10 rebounds, and seven assists.
While the overall rebounding differential was marginal, Cleveland did have a whopping 38.3 percent offensive rebound rate that was an important factor in the win.
Darius Garland provided exactly what the team needed in timely moments, finishing with 18 points and seven assists.
In the end, the Cavs being the best three-point shooting team in the league was probably the difference with four more made threes in the game.
Thunder Need Holmgren For Matchup
Seeing the way Mobley and Allen dictated this meeting, it’s evident that Oklahoma City need Chet Holmgren if the two teams were to meet in the NBA Finals.
Holmgren’s rim protection and size to matchup with those two bigs alongside Hartenstein could fundamentally change this matchup, while the Thunder also just flat out need more three-point shooting options and his spacing would be greatly beneficial.
The Thunder shot just 20 percent on its non-corner threes, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams the main culpritsgoing a combined 3-for-13 from deep. Having Holmgren as a pick-and-pop threat or as a trailer in delay action would tangibly change Cleveland’s defensive schemes.
Strus Finally Gets Loose
The biggest factor in the three-point differential in this game was a man who has hardly figured into Cleveland’s success so far this season.
Max Strus, who only played in seven games to this point because of an ankle injury just before the season began, erupted off the bench with 17 points including 5-of-6 shooting from three. Coming in, he had yet to get going with sub-30 percent shooting from deep. With his outside shot going, Strus was also able to help pick the Thunder defense apart with his playmaking to the tune of five assists.
Because Max Strus had his shot going, the Cavs used that to draw extra attention to Strus in their actions. This was especially true in two-man actions with Evan Mobley
First clip is a nice find to Georges Niang when the defense locked in on him and Mobley. Then, Strus dropped a… pic.twitter.com/SNxWyDTCsx
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) January 9, 2025
It was evident just how important Strus will be to Cleveland as he ended up playing in the closing lineup ahead of Dean Wade and Isaac Okoro, the two players who have been filling in as starters in his absence.
To think the Cavs have been the league’s best offense and the best three-point shooting team mostly without him and are just getting him acclimated is scary.
Role Player Battle Will Be Pivotal
While Strus was tremendous, the Cleveland bench as a whole outscored OKC’s 43-26.
Both teams generally have great depth but the Cavs certainly had the edge in this one. Some of that may be as straightforward as role players generally playing better at home.
The Thunder will believe its depth will be that much better when Holmgren and Alex Caruso are healthy.
In a league where the second apron is making depth a crucial aspect of team building rather than stacking superstars, these two teams are at the very top because their respective front offices have understood that and executed their roster building accordingly.
Watching the game, there was a consistency in level and execution that’s only possible with depth. Other teams may fall off a cliff when their best player is off the floor, but these two teams have clear functionality and an identity regardless of who’s on the floor. That’s a testament to both Kenny Atkinson and Mark Daigneault as well as their respective coaching staffs.
Bring on Round 2 in Oklahoma City on Jan. 16!
