Oklahoma City turns absences into opportunity and trust, while Cleveland’s dependence on full health exposes cracks in its rotation and identity — a difference laid bare Monday as the short-handed Thunder dismantled the Cavs.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have been handling wins and losses with a calm demeanor. On Saturday night, they lost to the Miami Heat 122-120, but their reaction was surprisingly composed.

Andrew Wiggins' 3-pointer with 31 seconds left secured a win for Miami over the Oklahoma City Thunder, 122-120.

As the 2026 NBA All-Star break quickly approaches, the Thunder could send a couple of representatives to the weekend extravaganza once again. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is a no-brainer. If there is justice in the basketball world, Chet Holmgren should join him.

Oklahoma City is back on track in a big way after a midseason slump. Not only have they won four straight games, and eight of the last 10, but the Thunder domin

The difference between the Thunder and Cavs from a talent standpoint was stark. Cleveland had one player in their starting lineup who could break down the defense off-the-dribble and very few reliable shooters around him. The Thunder dared Cleveland’s bigs — Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen — to beat them inside, which they couldn’t consistently do.

The Thunder (35-7) have won five in a row. They went on a second-half run to collect a 111-91 win over the Houston Rockets on Thursday. Chet Holmgren had 18 points, nine rebounds and four blocks to add to his NBA All-Star case.

This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/heat/onsi as Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat take down the Oklahoma City Thunder in nailbiter . It was less than a week ago that the Miami Heat faced off in Oklahoma City against this hot Thunder squad. The Heat were without Norman Powell and that one, while Tyler Herro suited up.