The Oklahoma City Thunder weren’t even supposed to make the playoffs. Preseason odds makers put the over-under on wins at 32.5. They got in anyway.
Could they continue to surpass expectations in the playoffs? FiveThirtyEight thinks they have a chance.
The website named the Thunder as one of six teams around the league that had a chance to be “party crashers” in the conference finals.
Reporter Jared Dubin wrote:
What makes it all the more remarkable is that the Thunder began the season 6-11, only to rip off a 34-13 stretch (a 60-win pace) the rest of the way. Throw in the fact that they’re entering the bubble as one of the few teams that has yet to confirm a positive coronavirus test, and things would seem to be looking up for them.
With that said, the website pointed out difficulties the Thunder will face.
Oklahoma City’s schedule is ninth-toughest in the bubble, and guard Dennis Schroder will leave in August for the birth of his child.
Additionally, the Thunder’s record against teams above .500 is second-worst of any team currently in a Western Conference playoff position, and FiveThirtyEight finds the team’s record in the clutch “unsustainable.”
Yet that clutch lineup has shown no signs of slipping. Head coach Billy Donovan has preached “togetherness,” which he thinks the team has, and communication, which they certainly have in the form of point guard Chris Paul.
With that three-guard lineup that excelled in the clutch, veterans like Paul, Steven Adams and Danilo Gallinari, and wing depth off the bench, the team and fans are looking much more at how this can work instead of how it can’t.
FiveThirtyEight projected a 1% chance for the Thunder to win the Western Conference and less than 1% to win the Finals.
Those margins are slim.
But the site is saying there’s a chance.