The Oklahoma City Thunder have lost 14 games in a row during their current streak, and they’re now 1-17 in their last 18 games over the past five weeks.
The 14 consecutive losses tied a franchise low for the Thunder.
“I don’t know if they’re aware of it,” said Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault. “When the scoreboard’s on, we’re competing and the guys want to win. I’ve never gone in the locker room after a loss and seen an apathetic group.”
Fading the Thunder has been profitable for bettors, especially during their losing streak. The Thunder are only 4-14 against the spread during that 18-game span. Overall, the Thunder are 24-33-1 ATS this season.
At this point in the season, the Thunder are all but eliminated from the playoff hunt. With just 20 wins, the Thunder are the fifth-worst team in the NBA and one of the three bottom feeders in the Western Conference.
If you consider preseason prognosticators, then the Thunder are overachieving. At the start of the season, the Thunder were projected to win just 15 games and were pegged by experts as the worst team in the West.
No SGA, No Future
The Thunder didn’t intend on tanking down the stretch, but it’s an unfortunate result of losing their best player.
Five weeks ago before the Thunder began their losing streak, they were 19-24 and only five games under .500. The Thunder had a long road ahead of them if they wanted to make a run for the play-in tournament.
That became a daunting task without their top scorer, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Since losing SGA to a foot injury, the Thunder went 1-17.
“We have to be a little cleaner with our execution,” said Daigneault, who thinks his squad can snap the skid this week.
During their last four games, the Thunder barely put up 105.5 points per game on offense. The Thunder’s porous defense allowed 122.7 ppg, which is why they failed to win a game last week.
The only upside to losing SGA is that rookies like Theo Maledon (9.9 ppg) and Aleksej Pokusevski (7.5 ppg) are getting playing time and a chance to develop their skills.
On Deck: Boston, New Orleans, Indiana, Phoenix
The Thunder have four games in the next six nights, including back-to-back games this weekend. At least three of those games are at home in OKC.
The Thunder lost to the Philadelphia 76ers last night in a 31-point blowout. They face the tail-end of back-to-back games tonight when they head up to Boston to play the Celtics. The Celtics are 11-point favorites over the beaten-down Thunder.
On Thursday, the Thunder head home and host Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans. Over the weekend, they play the Indiana Pacers on Saturday and the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.
The Thunder almost beat a short-handed Indiana last week. The Pacers were without Domantas Sabonis (back) and two other starters. Yet, their small-ball lineup edged out the Thunder by six points.
