Thunder Gameday: Mavs Come to Tulsa for Preseason Contest

The Thunder head west in their home state to host the Mavericks in Tulsa.

It’s the preseason opener for the Dallas Mavericks, who will be in Tulsa today to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder at the BOK Center.

Earlier this week, the Thunder looked great in their first game of the preseason in a win over the Denver Nuggets. While they’ll once again be shorthanded, the Mavericks will as well

Dallas has already announced that the team will be without Davis Bertans and JaVale McGee in this matchup. Furthermore, the expectation is that Luka Doncic will also not play in Wednesday’s game.

Either way, this will be a good test for the young Thunder roster as they take on a legitimate Western Conference contender.

Isaiah J. Downing / USA TODAY Sports

KEYS TO THE GAME: 

The Mavs have championship aspirations, looking to build off of the success they had in the postseason last year. They’re a great defensive team, but so is Oklahoma City.

There’s a real chance that both teams showcase high defensive upside and it becomes a low scoring game.

The Thunder will be without Lu Dort and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander once again in this matchup, meaning others will have a chance to emerge. In their last preseason game, it was Tre Mann and Josh Giddey who stepped up to the challenge.

Today, keep an eye on rookies Jalen Williams and Ousmane Dieng to take another step forward as they get more comfortable.

RECORDS: 

Oklahoma City Thunder (1-0) vs. Dallas Mavericks (0-0)

WHEN: 

Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022 at 7:00 PM CT

LOCATION: 

BOK Center - Tulsa, OK

TV/RADIO: 

Thunder Mobile App, okcthunder.com, NBA League Pass, 98.1 FM The Sports Animal

FINAL WORD: 

Following this contest, the Thunder will head back to Oklahoma City for a pair of contests against international teams. They’ll host the Adelaide 36ers on Thursday and Ra'anana Maccabi on Sunday to round out the week.

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