Thunder’s depth – Oklahoma City beat the San Antonio Spurs 127-114 in Game 5 to take a 3-2 lead, closing in on a second straight Finals appearance despite missing Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32, while Jared McCain made his first playoff star
Oklahoma City didn’t just win Game 5—it leaned on the kind of depth that, when it works, can feel like pressure leaving the arena.
The Thunder beat the San Antonio Spurs 127-114 last night to take a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference finals. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points, and with the series now back in Oklahoma City’s favor, the Thunder have a chance to close out the Spurs in San Antonio tomorrow.
The margin wasn’t shaped only by star power. It was shaped by who showed up when the lineup didn’t.
Oklahoma City went without injured All-Star forward Jalen Williams, as well as guard Ajay Mitchell for the second straight game. In the middle of that, Jared McCain made his first playoff start and scored 20 points. Alex Caruso, Kenrich Williams, and Cason Wallace then combined to score 37 off the bench.
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said he “never take[s] it for granted when someone steps into a role like that in a game like this,” adding, “I’m certainly not surprised. He’s got great moxie and confidence.”
Gilgeous-Alexander pointed to Caruso’s impact beyond box scores, saying, “He’s one of the best competitors in the NBA, night in and night out. He sets that tone for us as a group. It’s coming full-fledged in this series.”
San Antonio, meanwhile, has struggled to find consistent production from both stars and role players. Last night, guards De’Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper combined to score only 14 points on 5-of-20 shooting.
Victor Wembanyama had what was described as his worst game of the series. He recorded only 20 points, six rebounds and one assist on 4-of-15 shooting. Wemby missed all five of his 3s and struggled to get into the paint. He also declined to speak with the media after the game.
After the loss, Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said: “He’s got to take more than 15 shots, even with the free throws. He’s going to have to score more than 20 points, for sure.” Johnson added: “OKC did a good job. We’ve got to do a better job.”
The sequence in this series has been simple to name and hard to ignore: the Thunder have been able to keep producing even when key players are missing, while the Spurs have had trouble manufacturing steady offense when their top options aren’t delivering.
With Oklahoma City one win away from reaching its second straight NBA Finals, the stakes now narrow to a single question—can the Spurs find answers quickly enough, or will OKC turn depth into its way back to the biggest stage again?
Oklahoma City Thunder San Antonio Spurs NBA playoffs Game 5 Western Conference finals Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Jared McCain Alex Caruso Victor Wembanyama Mark Daigneault Mitch Johnson