On Saturday, the OKC Thunder lost a nail-biter to Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Cup semifinals.
Oklahoma City jumped out to a commanding 16-point lead, but the Spurs went on to outscore them 78-60 in the final 27 minutes of the game.
Arguably the biggest reason for this was rising superstar Victor Wembanyama.
Versatile bigs seem to be kryptonite for Thunder
In his first game back from a prolonged injury absence, he came off the bench and completely changed the game. He filled up the stat sheet in just 21 minutes, scoring 22 points while registering nine rebounds, two assists, and two blocks.
Most importantly, the Spurs were plus-21 when he was on the court.
From the eye test, it was easy to see how much of a difference Wemby's presence made. He altered the Thunder's entire defensive attack and drew defenders into him like moths around a flame, causing mismatches all around the perimeter.
The Thunder's struggles with Wemby indicate a larger issue that has been going under the radar for a while now.
OKC's defensive scheme has created massive problems for opposing teams, especially in the paint, so one would assume they would have no problem shutting down centers.
When faced with the few elite centers in the league, however, the dominant force in the paint seems to create chaos that the Thunder struggles to defend sufficiently.
We saw symptoms of this dating back to the playoffs last year, when Oklahoma City almost saw its title hopes go out the window at the hands of Nikola Jokic.
The 6-foot-11, 280-pound unicorn had a similar effect as Wembanyama. The Thunder had no answers, and Jokic dished and dimed as he pulled perimeter defenders away from their assignments.
If the Nuggets had been healthier, Thunder fans may not have had a parade to attend last June.
OKC saw this problem again on opening night, when Sengun dropped 39 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists as the game went into double overtime.
The Rockets were plus-nine when he was on the floor. No other starter was more than plus-two.
Putting Caruso on these interior dominators has been a go-to solution for Daigneault and company, but something might have to change if big men keep having this much of an effect on the outcome of the game.
With Jokic, Wemby, Sengun, and other big-name centers leading their teams to dominance in the West, the Thunder may have to go back to the drawing board if they wish to escape their conference and get another shot at hoisting the Larry O'Brien Trophy in June.