The Oklahoma City Thunder officially locked up the first seed in the Western Conference on Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Clippers. It was another dominant victory for the most formidable team in the league, and it was perhaps the most gelled performance they've had on both ends of the floor in quite a while.
Although there was a bit of anxiety surrounding the San Antonio Spurs' continued success, the debate is now over. The Thunder are the best team in the NBA, at least from a standpoint of regular-season success.
But in their victory, another season-long debate may have ended in resounding fashion. Chet Holmgren had his most impressive offensive performance of the season, posting 30 points, 14 rebounds, and five assists while shooting an efficient 10-of-13 from the field.
It's been a hotly debated topic all season long— is Holmgren an All-NBA-caliber player?
These types of performances this late in the season have the potential to seriously sway voters. With his monstrous night against the Clippers, Holmgren may have just sealed his spot in the awards race.
Chet Holmgren's monstrous Clippers performance is just the cherry on top of his All-NBA case
From the very outset of the game, it was clear that Holmgren was clicking offensively. He took advantage of the Clippers' incessant double-teaming of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, knocking down five of the six shots he took in the first quarter and getting a quick,14-point start to his night.
Although he slowed down a bit in the second half as the Thunder let off the gas, Holmgren was impressive, launching shots from the perimeter and contorting his body to finish at the rim throughout the course of the game.
It wasn't his highest-scoring performance of the season (he had 31 points against the Atlanta Hawks back in October). But it was easily his most dominant and efficient.
The knock against Holmgren this season has consistently been his lack of offensive punch.
Just based on defensive metrics alone, there's a case to be made for him. He posted four blocks against Los Angeles. It was his 10th game this season with four or more swats. Per Dunks & Threes, he's fourth in the NBA (and second among all centers) in defensive estimated plus-minus, a stat intended to measure a player's total defensive contributions.
But Holmgren's latest outing was a prime example of what he can be offensively when given the opportunity.
We can debate who Oklahoma City's second-best player is. Or we can debate whether Holmgren will ever truly have a case for Defensive Player of the Year as long as Wembanyama is in the league.
But in this one instance, it's best not to overthink it. Holmgren has had an All-NBA-caliber season.
He should be rewarded accordingly.