How Does the Thunder's Remaining Schedule Stack up Against the Rest of the NBA?
Fifty-eight down, 24 to go.
With All-Star weekend having past NBA teams are gearing up for the final regular season push toward the playoffs — or a better draft pick.
According to Tankathon, the Thunder (18-40) have the league’s 14th-strongest remaining schedule — putting OKC right in the middle of the pack for its last 24 games.
Of the top four teams in the projected lottery, the Thunder have the second-strongest remaining schedule — with the Houston Rockets’ opponents having an average .505 win-percentage, compared to the Thunder’s .503.
OKC’s schedule is highlighted by two matchups with the league-leading Phoenix Suns (48-10), two with the Utah Jazz (36-22). The Thunder will also get one more shot at the Memphis Grizzlies (41-19) after splitting the first two meetings — the first of which being an NBA record defeat.
On the flip side, the Thunder have a pair of games remaining with the Orlando Magic (13-47), who currently sit atop the projected lottery. The schedule also contains the Detroit Pistons (13-45) — currently second on that list. And the Indiana Pacers (20-40) — currently fifth.
The Milwaukee Bucks' (36-24) opponent winning percentage sits at .554 for their remaining 22 games — the highest in the NBA, while the Pacers have the easiest remaining schedule with an opponent win percentage of .456.
The Thunder's preseason win total came in at 23.5, which means OKC will need to go 6-18 to finish the season in order to surpass the number. Coincidentally that is the exact record the Thunder finished its final 24 games heading into the All-Star break.
With the continuing growth of Josh Giddey and the return of leading-scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander expected to come soon after okay resumes, the Thunder have what it takes to hit that 24 win mark – if not more.
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