By The Numbers: Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder take on Cavaliers in titanic matchup
Published
Wednesday’s NBA slate features a matchup between the two best teams in the NBA, as the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder (30-5) take on the East-leading Cleveland Cavaliers (31-4).
The Thunder enter tonight’s game in Cleveland on a 15-game win streak, while the Cavs come in riding a 10-game win streak. It will be the first matchup in NBA history between teams with winning streaks of that length.
It will also be the first interconference game in league history between teams with a winning percentage of .850 or higher this late into the season.
After finishing second in MVP voting last season, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is once again firmly in the mix for Most Valuable Player.
The 26-year-old guard is averaging 31.3 points, 6.1 assists, and 5.6 rebounds per game this season. Gilgeous-Alexander is also getting it done on the defensive end and ranks third in the NBA with 2.0 steals and is second amongst guards with 1.1 blocks per game.
The Hamilton, Ont., native has added a new dimension to his game this season by averaging a career-high 2.2 threes per game, up from 1.3 last season. Gilgeous-Alexander currently ranks second on the KIA MVP Ladder and is generating buzz among his fellow players.
“He’s looking like the MVP, man. He’s consistent every night. His team gonna give him the ball and just let him rock out every night,” said Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards. “I love watching that. It’s incredible, man. If he [keeps doing] that, I hope they give [the MVP] to him this year for sure. He’s playing out his mind right now.”
The Cavaliers enter tonight’s game on their second win streak of 10 or more games after becoming just the fourth team in NBA history to open a season 15-0. It's the first time since 2019-20 that two teams have had winning streaks of 15 or more games in the same season.
Cleveland’s backcourt tandem of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland has led the charge through the team’s historic start. Garland has had a bounce-back year after struggling through injuries in 2023-24, averaging 20.5 points and hitting a career-best 2.9 threes per game while shooting a career-high 49 per cent from the field.
Mitchell, a five-time All-Star and former Second-Team All-NBA selection, is also setting a career-best mark from deep (3.8 per game) while averaging the fewest minutes (31.3) in his career.
The Cavaliers enter the game with the second-best offence in the NBA, averaging 122.2 points per game while the Thunder come in with the best defence in the league, holding opponents to 102.8 points per contest.
Both teams have a historic point differential as the Thunder (12.1) and Cavaliers (11.8) are on pace for the fourth- and fifth-highest single-season marks of all time.
Both teams are on pace to win 70+ games this season. If both teams continued their torrid pace, it would mark the first time in NBA history that two teams finished with 70 wins in the same season.