OKC Thunder, OKC Blue set to play doubleheaders at Paycom Center

The OKC Thunder season gets underway soon, with Media Day taking place in a few weeks and NBA training camp getting started on September 28th. This season will feel like normal as the schedule features an October start, rather than December 23rd, and each team plays 82 games.

With that, the NBA G-League will also get back to normal, after playing a 12-game bubble stretch a year ago in Disney world, the league will return to home stadiums and play a full season.

OKC Thunder, OKC Blue set to play doubleheaders

The OKC Thunder G-League affiliate remains the OKC Blue, however, the Blue will have a new home. After spending years across the street at the Cox Convention Center, the CCC is no more as the new Prairie Surf Studios takes over the space.

Rather than moving back to Tulsa, or anywhere else, the Thunder elect to keep their G-League squad in Oklahoma City so both teams will play their home contests in the Paycom Center. That sets up 15 doubleheaders, which will start on November 7th.

This benefits the team when pulling players up and sending them down to the G-League and with two tantalizing two-way players in Paul Watson Jr and Aaron Wiggins, you do not want them racking up the travel miles before getting their shot in the association.

The Blue will host the Salt Lake City Stars at 11 a.m. local time while the varsity squad takes on the Spurs at 6 p.m.

The first game for the OKC Blue takes place on November 5th at the Paycom Center against the Stars. Starting on the 5th of November, the Two-way gamedays cap (50-games on an active NBA roster) begins to count for Paul Watson Jr and Rookie Aaron Wiggins. They will be able to play eight regular-season games, if Mark Daigneault chooses, without it counting against their 50-game limit.

The NBA G-league ignite is back and has a roster full of 2022 NBA Draft hopefuls yet again. They will travel to Oklahoma City on December 3rd and December 5th. While the OKC Thunder are on the road and see off days on both dates, this would be a great time to check out the team’s G-League squad and possibly see some future OKC Thunder players.

The G-League will have two segments to their schedule, a 14-game lead up to the Showcase cup which will then roll into the true 36-game regular season from December 27th to April 2nd.

The G-League Ignite team will only play the 14-games leading up to the cup and participate in the showcase but will not take part in the traditional regular season.

The Oklahoma City Blue take on the Memphis Hustle on March 2nd and the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on March 10th with each game serving as the team’s annual “Field Trip Day” event.