The Western Conference finals between the Spurs and Thunder are about to begin. This series has the potential to be remembered for years to come. It could be the start of a rivalry between two franchises with young cores capable of winning championships. For one of these teams, this could be a moment that defines a future dynasty or the birth of a superstar showdown. The winner of this series should be favoured to win a championship.
A Clash of the NBA’s Best
There are many reasons why this series carries a lot of weight and should be fascinating to watch. The Spurs and Thunder had the two best records in the NBA during the regular season. The Spurs went 62-20 and the Thunder went 64-18. They both racked up a ton of wins because they are two fantastic teams.
This is the first playoff series between 62-win teams in 28 years. The last time it happened was between the Bulls and Jazz in the 1998 NBA Finals. Michael Jordan clinched the series with the famous shot over Bryon Russell.
Overall, it’s the seventh series between 62-win teams in NBA history. The Bulls were part of this each year of their second three-peat. There were the ’85 Finals between the Lakers and Celtics, the 1981 conference finals between the Celtics and 76ers, and the 1972 series between the Lakers and Bucks.
SGA vs. Wemby: A Potential Rivalry is Born
This is a series between the best two teams in the NBA with two of the best players. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander just won his second NBA MVP award, while Victor Wembanyama finished third in the voting.
Ideally, this would be the NBA’s next great player rivalry. Consider the likes of Wilt Chamberlain vs. Bill Russell, Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson and LeBron James vs. Kevin Durant. Those pairs combined to meet 15 times in the playoffs, including eight times in the NBA Finals.
SGA and Wemby don’t play the same position, but they should be meeting at the rim a few times.
Spurs’ Dream Scenario
This is pretty much the dream scenario for the Spurs. They were bottom feeders three years ago when they won the Wemby sweepstakes. He almost immediately delivered on the hype as one of the best prospects ever by playing MVP-caliber ball while elevating his team to championship contention at the young age of 22.
That puts him on the cusp of doing things nobody has ever done. No one has led an NBA champion in scoring at this age and no one in NBA history has ever reached the NBA Finals while finishing top three in NBA MVP voting at this age.
There were some close calls. Kareem won his first MVP and title at age 23 and LeBron was an MVP finalist when he reached his first Finals in ’07 at 22, but Wemby could be the youngest to rea