The Oklahoma City Thunder, as expected, took Game 1 against the Los Angeles Lakers.
It's not as though this series won't be difficult. The Lakers have played incredibly well so far this postseason, and they've found a tentative offensive structure in the absence of Luka Doncic that could give Oklahoma City trouble if there's any lapses in their game.
But the Thunder had ample rest heading into Game 1 and were as confident as ever after their four-game sweep of the Phoenix Suns. They forced 17 turnovers on the night, swarming the Los Angeles offense and making virtually all of their shots difficult. Combined with excellent offensive performances from Chet Holmgren and Ajay Mitchell, there's really no other way Game 1 could've gone.
Even an excellent night from Austin Reaves likely wouldn't have changed the result, but his complete disappearance should be concerning for the Lakers. Across nearly 36 minutes on the court, Reaves posted just eight points on 3-of-16 shooting from the field.
If he can't quickly find his game, this series could soon be wrapped up in the Thunder's favor.
Thunder must hope Austin Reaves' struggles aren't a one-game fluke
Reaves missed the end of the regular season and the start of the Lakers' series against the Houston Rockets with an oblique strain. It's natural for him to have some difficulty acclimating to playoff basketball after he missed that amount of time.
But Reaves looked solid in the two games he played against Houston, averaging 18.5 points. Although his field-goal percentage was sub-par, he looked at least partially like himself offensively. On Tuesday night against Oklahoma City, he did not.
It goes almost without saying that Reaves is massively important to what Los Angeles wants to accomplish on both ends of the court, especially without Luka Doncic. During the regular season, Los Angeles had a net rating of 7.2 with Reaves on the court and a net rating of 1.1 when he was off, per Databallr.
With how locked in the Thunder are defensively from both a schematic and an executional standpoint, the Lakers will need all hands on deck to even make this series competitive.
LeBron James is playing some of his best basketball in a long time. He posted 27 points on 12-of-17 shooting in Game 1. But the Thunder, for the most part, were content to let him have his points inside the paint.
If Reaves continues to struggle, and no one steps up as a second offensive option Los Angeles can rely upon, the Thunder should be able to make quick work of their opponent.
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