Jared McCain said Mason Plumlee came at him late with a hard foul and then a back-and-forth he described as pure competition. The NBA later upgraded the call to a Flagrant 1 as Oklahoma City closed Game 5 at home with a 127-114 win, taking a 3-2 lead and setti
When the Oklahoma City Thunder took Game 5 on Tuesday night, the scoreboard was already telling the story: a 127-114 victory and a 3-2 lead heading toward San Antonio. Still, the moment Mason Plumlee’s hard foul landed on Jared McCain late in the game lingered.
McCain walked into the postgame interview with the kind of blunt surprise that comes when something feels uninvited. “That was crazy. I didn’t expect it, obviously,” he said. “We were at the free-throw line. too. and I was like. ‘Why’d you do that man?’ I’m just asking him questions. and he was like. ‘I’ve got another one for you. too.’ … It’s all in competition. so gotta respect it.”.
The NBA upgraded the foul to a Flagrant 1 on Wednesday. Plumlee, though, barely had any time to impact what came next—he played just two minutes in garbage time, with the game already well in hand for OKC.
For McCain, the night still belonged to basketball. The second-year guard finished with 20 points in his first career playoff start. and the Thunder didn’t have the same trouble slowing him that they hoped to avoid. This was the second time in the series he reached the 20-point mark; he scored 24 points in Oklahoma City’s Game 3 win.
What made McCain’s output matter even more was the injury picture around him. Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell were both sidelined Tuesday, clearing the way for McCain to start and giving Shai Gilgeous-Alexander more help on the floor as the Thunder leaned into their offense.
Gilgeous-Alexander delivered as he often does in these moments. He led the Thunder with 32 points and nine assists, while Alex Caruso sparked the bench with 22 points.
The Thunder’s path to this point has been shaped by moves and timing as much as talent. Oklahoma City acquired McCain via trade from the Philadelphia 76ers earlier this season, and the acquisition has already paid off in a postseason stretch that will be judged heavily if the Thunder keep pushing.
The sequence of Tuesday’s physical late-game moment and the Flagrant 1 upgrade on Wednesday left a clear edge hanging over the series. With Thursday’s Game 6 approaching and Oklahoma City now one win away from the NBA Finals. San Antonio will carry both the comfort of trailing by just one game in the series and the memory of that foul.
The Spurs will have to find a way to slow McCain and handle the intensity of Oklahoma City’s main engine—especially as the Thunder head back to San Antonio with a 3-2 lead.
Jared McCain Mason Plumlee Oklahoma City Thunder San Antonio Spurs Game 5 Flagrant 1 Western Conference Finals Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Alex Caruso Jalen Williams Ajay Mitchell NBA playoffs