Week in Review: Thunder reach new lows in slide

Oklahoma City is currently riding a six-game losing streak, unfamiliar territory for one of the winningest franchises in professional sports over the last decade

Riding a six-game losing streak, the Thunder are in uncharted waters.

Oklahoma City owns one of the highest win percentages among professional sports over the last decade, but the Thunder suffered four more losses over the last week, reaching historic lows in the process.

With a bare-bones roster headlined by rookies Aleksej Pokusevski and Theo Maledon, and new acquisitions Tony Bradley, Jaylen Hoard and Justin Robinson, the Thunder suffered home losses to Detroit, Charlotte, Cleveland and Philadelphia. They are now 1-9 in their last 10.


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On Monday, former Thunder Jerami Grant, a candidate for Most Improved Player, paced the Pistons with 21 points, five boards and five assists in a 132-108 smackdown of OKC.

On Wednesday, a Hornets roster, suffering from injury issues of its own, handed the Thunder a 113-102 loss to push the losing streak to four.

Pokusevski led the Thunder in both contests, scoring 19 points against the Pistons and a career-high 25 against the Hornets.

Thursday is when the streak reached new lows.

Following the Thunder's 129-102 loss to the Cavaliers on Thursday night, Oklahoma City's point differential over their five-game losing streak fell to 29.4 points per loss, the worst mark for any team since the 1993-94 season.

Saturday night, Joel Embiid trampled the Thunder with 27 points, nine rebounds and four assists in a 117-93 contest, the sixth straight loss. Oklahoma City has lost five out of its last six by 20 or more points. Prior to this recent skid, the Thunder’s longest streak was just three-straight. 

Darius Bazley and Luguentz Dort each made their return against Philadelphia, combining for 32 points in the loss.

With a Raptors win Saturday night, Oklahoma City now has sole possession of the seventh worst record in the league.


Published
Derek Parker
DEREK PARKER

Derek is the Publisher for InsideTheThunder.com and Draft Digest for Fan Nation, powered by Sports Illustrated. He has been a sports writer in the Oklahoma City market for five years now, primarily covering the Oklahoma City Thunder and NBA Draft.