For the first time in nearly three years, the Oklahoma City Thunder are on a three-game losing streak. That's what happened after their 113-112 lossto the LA Clippers on Friday. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a couple of chances to hit the go-ahead bucket in the final seconds. No dice.
Hard to blame him too much for the heartbreaker, really. Gilgeous-Alexander ball'd out with 40 points on 15-of-26 shooting and five assists. The two-time MVP winner almost pulled off the one-man carry job. Alas, OKC's offense went through a dry spell at the absolute worst time. It went scoreless in the final 2:43 of the game.
This was also part of the 2026 NBA Cup West Group B play. Every team will play four games throughout November as part of that. Here's a look
at the mid-season tournament standings:
- 1. Minnesota Timberwolves 2-0, plus-32 point differential
- 2. LA Clippers 1-1, minus-25 point differential
- 3. Oklahoma City Thunder 1-1, plus-30 point differential
- 4. Memphis Grizzlies 1-1, zero point differential
- 5. New Orleans Pelicans 0-2, minus-37 point differential
As a reminder, there are six groups of five teams for the NBA Cup — three in each conference. At the end of the month, all six group winners, plus two top wildcard teams, will advance to an eight-team knockout stage. The higher-seeded team will host in the quarterfinals and semifinals. The finals will be played in Indiana at Butler's collegiate home gym.
A bunch of money is tied up in the NBA Cup rewards. The quarterfinal losers will receive an additional $53K per player; the semifinal losers will receive $106K per player; the finals loser will receive $212K per player; and the NBA Cup winner will receive $530K per player.
The Thunder have finished in the top four in the last two years. They lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2024 NBA Cup finals and lost to the San Antonio Spurs in the 2025 NBA Cup semifinals. Both happened in Las Vegas — when those rounds were still hosted there.
The Thunder have three 2026 NBA Cup West Group B games left — Friday, Nov. 20, hosting the Pelicans; and Wednesday, Nov. 25, hosting the Timberwolves.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Updated 2026 NBA Cup West Group B standings after Thunder lose to Clippers
