For most of the season, the leading belief was that the Oklahoma City Thunder and Spurs were destined to meet in the conference finals, but there were questions about whether a young San Antonio team could make it that far. Well, they did just that, and knocked off the reigning champions in the process. The playoff experience they gained leading up to the NBA Finals was invaluable, but it has reached new heights on basketball's biggest stage.
The Spurs are the second-youngest team ever to reach the finals (half a year younger than OKC last year), defying outside expectations. San Antonio wasn't supposed to make it this far, even with seven-foot-four Victor Wembanyama leading the way in his first playoff run. They made it out of the West without first gaining experience, which was once assumed to be a prerequisite to making it there.
There are situations that you can't replicate unless you're in them, and playing in the finals is one of them. The lessons the Spurs are learning, and already learned in their Game 1 defeat, will serve them next season as they look to make it back to where they are now.
Oklahoma City already has that experience, of course, but its Game 7 loss to San Antonio in the WCF helped fuel the beast that is the Spurs.
NBA Finals experience will only fuel Spurs in the future
San Antonio's resilience was a theme in the first three rounds of the playoffs, and fans hope it will continue in Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Friday. The Spurs scored only 95 points in Game 1, shooting 36% from the field and 26% from three. Wembanyama shot 6-of-21 and committed six turnovers, and was outplayed by Karl-Anthony Towns.
They've bounced back before, and could again, but the finals are different. Still, you can't count San Antonio out, and if they clear the hurdle tonight, they'll be stronger for it. And if they don't, they'll have to figure out how to do so with their backs against the wall at the one and only Madison Square Garden, which will be another lesson in itself.
Next season could be even more of a challenge for Thunder
The discourse after Oklahoma City's Game 7 loss to San Antonio made it seem like the Thunder would never climb the mountaintop again. OKC isn't going anywhere, though it knows the path back to where it was last year won't be easy, especially not against an experienced Spurs team.
Oklahoma City knows what it needs to address this offseason to better position itself for next season, from Sam Presti's front-office decisions to Chet Holmgren's willingness to be more assertive and aggressive to combat not just San Antonio, but the rest of the league.
Now, let's wait and see if it will all go according to plan.
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