OKC Thunder have won nearly 60% of first games against ATL

Though the OKC Thunder are a sub-.500 team with their sights set on the future, they have still presented a challenge for virtually every opponent they’ve found themselves squaring off against thus far into the 2020-21 campaign.

Generally speaking, a team in tank mode does not typically pose a threat to upset teams on any given night, but this squad is different — it has spunk.

Along with said spunk, Oklahoma City sees a rotation rolling out a talented pool of both veterans and youthful ballers, spanning from Al Horford and George Hill (though not recently) to Luguentz Dort and 2021 All-Star snub Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Because of this, they’re constantly finding themselves fighting till the end of an outing, from close matchups against the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers and superteams like the Brooklyn Nets to their most recent buzzer-beating victory against the San Antonio Spurs.

All things considered, despite the Thunder’s 13-19 record and current placement as the 12th seed in the Western Conference Standings, fans should feel confident in their team’s chances every night.

This sentiment, of course, should flow right along into tonight’s matchup against the Atlanta Hawks.

The OKC Thunder have a nice track record against Atlanta in game ones

Though Atlanta may have a bevy of talented contributors on their roster in John Collins, former OKC Thunder forward Danilo Gallinari, and 2020 All-Star point guard Trae Young, like the Thunder, they, too, hold a losing record on the season at 14-18 — in the less challenging Eastern Conference, mind you.

While they have some menacing names in tow, they have proven to be quite an underwhelming team through their first 32 games of action, thus strengthening OKC’s chances of winning their second straight game even more.

Add in the fact that it’s their first matchup of the season against Atlanta, and, if history is any indicator, they have nearly a 60% chance of pulling out a ‘W.’

Since the Thunder’s inaugural season, they’ve squared off against the Hawks 22 times. During these outings, when looking at their first games played in each of these campaigns spanning back to 2008-09, Oklahoma City has won seven of them and is currently on a four-year streak of doing so.

Let’s hope this positive trend continues into tonight and, in turn, we look to make it five years in a row that the Sooner State prevails in game one.