The Oklahoma City Thunder have been a streaky perimeter-shooting team, dating back to the second round of the 2024 playoffs against the Mavericks, but they showed signs of trending in the right direction through first round play.
Oklahoma City showed off its shooting in the first round, and it might be unbeatable if it continues to hit at this rate from the perimeter.
On Monday night, the Thunder became the first team to clinch a spot in the second round, after sweeping the Phoenix Suns in Phoenix. The defending champions are one step closer to completing their goal of repeating. While there are plenty of things to take away from the Thunder’s first-round sweep, perimeter shooting was certainly one of the most positive signs.
Throughout the four games against Phoenix, the Thunder shot 36.3% from deep on 39.3 attempts per game. If these numbers hold up for the remainder of the postseason, the Thunder could become nearly unbeatable.
Thunder’s Stellar Shooting Performance in Round 1
Five players: Jalen Williams (50%), Alex Caruso (47.1%), Ajay Mitchell (45%), Chet Holmgren (38.9%), and Lu Dort (36.4%), all shot better than the Thunder’s team percentage of 36.3 for the series, which is a good sign, given that the majority of those players are only not defense-minded players but streaky shooters. After an underwhelming shooting display in the Thunder’s 2025 title run, shooting only 33.8%, ranking 13th out of 16 playoff teams, getting some consistent shooting from their top rotation players will be critical.
While the Thunder have seen internal improvement from sharpshooter Isaiah Joe and external improvement with the acquisition of Jared McCain, both of whom add gravity and can light teams up from deep, it would do wonders for Oklahoma City to find some consistency from the perimeter without having to rely on the two sharpshooters fully. Most importantly, the Thunder don’t want to over-reliance on one of those players for perimeter shooting, then potentially have to deal with that player getting played off the floor on defense.
Joe was a product of this exact concern last postseason. After playing a crucial part in the Thunder’s regular-season success, a slight decline in shooting and his defensive shortcomings limited his effectiveness in the postseason. While Joe has made noticeable improvements as a movement shooter and defensively, seeing it translate and hold up is another question in itself.
Still, the Thunder only shot well in the first round; it doesn’t mean those numbers will hold up for the remainder of their postseason run. However, it’s a positive sign for the rest of the run, compared to shooting 31.3% from deep against the Memphis Grizzlies in their opening round from last postseason.
Of course, there’s no certainty that these shooting numbers will remain for the entirety of the postseason for the Thunder, but finding ways to continue to generate clean looks as we continue deeper into the playoffs will give them a great shot at repeating. This year’s team is better equipped this time around.
Main Image: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
