With their win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night, the OKC Thunder secured their third straight playoff berth as the first seed in the Western Conference.
With two games remaining and virtually nothing to play for, the defending champs have allowed themselves some flexibility in terms of workload management.
Because of this, they have decided to sit... everyone.
The Thunder are electing to start Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins, Jared McCain, Kenrich Williams, and Nikola Topic, with Brooks Barnhizer, Branden Carlson, and Payton Sandfort coming off the bench.
Coach Mark Daigneault and company had to go deep into their bag to find appropriate injuries for their inactive players -- Toe soreness, knee soreness, and various injury "management" tags all appear on the report.
The decision to run a glorified G-League lineup out onto the court Friday makes complete sense when you take into account their opponent.
Thunder's stunt has made postseason scheme painfully obvious
The Denver Nuggets are just a game and a half up on the Los Angeles Lakers and the Houston Rockets for the three seed. An OKC loss and subsequently a Denver win would ensure the Nuggets and Spurs would have to encounter one another before getting their shot at the Thunder in the Western Conference Semifinals.
Meanwhile, the Thunder will have a date with either the Lakers or the Rockets, both of which they have dominated this season.
Whether their lineup maneuvering is more about their respect for Nikola Jokic or how little they think of the other two teams remains to be seen, but it is clear they have made their decision on whom they think they have the best chance of beating.
Even though they have swept the season series against Denver thus far, it's apparent that they believe the other two teams are much more beatable.
The hobbled Lakers are limping to the finish line, with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves both out for the rest of the regular season and possibly the start of the playoffs.
The Rockets, though having struggled with various chemistry issues this season, have upheld a respectable record all year long and could represent a challenge if a few stars align.
With their decision to sit virtually their entire roster, the Thunder should be well-rested for the start of the postseason, where they'll have a first-round bout with one of the Suns, Clippers, Trail Blazers, or Warriors.
They are a combined 13-2 against those teams.