How Worried Should the OKC Thunder be After NBA Cup Final?

The Oklahoma City Thunder had a less than stellar showing against the Milwuakee Bucks, coming up just short of an NBA Cup win.

Dec 17, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) shoots against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) and guard Alex Caruso (9) during the 4th quarter of the Emirates NBA Cup championship game at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

As dominant as the Oklahoma City Thunder has been in the first quarter of the 2024-25 season, one might've expected a better showing than what it gave in the NBA Cup Final against the Milwuakee Bucks.

An abysmal 5-of-32 clip on 3-pointers and underwhelming performances from its leading scorers caused the Thunder to be the runner-up in the NBA Cup, falling to the Bucks 97-81. Every strength that has catapulted Oklahoma City back to the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference offensively was completely diminished.

Obviously, it's a cause for some concerns. If the Thunder were to reach the NBA Finals over the summer, Milwaukee is a team that is highly capable of matching up against it. An offensive display like that should never happen against any team, much less one with the duo of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard at the forefront.

Though Isaiah Hartenstein played sound basketball in the starting center spot — putting up 16 points and 12 rebounds — Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez dominated inside the paint and on the glass. Without Chet Holmgren, Hartenstein's really the only option to go up against big men of that nature.

Holmgren's eventual return is the silver lining when it comes down to that situation and winning the rebounding battle, but there's still lots of time on the calendar before he's inserted back into the lineup. Until then, there won't a true glimpse at what Oklahoma City is as a complete roster, because injuries haven't allowed it to happen.

That said, one thing is clear that the Thunder will need to address with Holmgren or not: 3-point shooting.

Shooting below 16% on 3-pointers as a collective unit is highly uncommon, but subpar shooting has been a trend for Oklahoma City throughout the year. Its season average of 35% ranks among the middle portion of the league — a big decrease from a year ago.

Shooters normally thought of as elite, haven't been that some cases. Alex Caruso joined the Thunder as a 40% 3-point shooter but holds a measly 26% as of now. Cason Wallace was the definition of efficient in his rookie campaign but has fallen off to below 30% shooting from behind the arc.

Oklahoma City doesn't have nearly as many reliable 3-point shooters as it'll need come playoff time, and that was on full display against the Bucks. Before the trade deadline, it's crucial that it scours the market to add a floor spacer.

It's still a little too early to tell what players will be available for a trade, though Brooklyn Nets forward Cam Johnson's name has been brought up in recent rumors. The 28-year-old is averaging 18.6 points and 45.6% shooting from 3-point range on 7.5 attempts per game.

That production may even be beyond what the Thunder needs, but someone in the mold of Johnson could help prevent a performance like this from happening in the future.

There's no need to panic and worry about if Oklahoma City is still a legitimate championship contender — it certainly is. Offensive no-shows happen every once in a while, especially after other recent big games. However, that doesn't mean that its roster is fully complete to put it in the best possible position to make a deep run in the playoffs.

The loss to Milwaukee won't show up in the Thunder's final record, but it might be a valuable learning experience for it moving forward.

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