The Oklahoma City Thunder, should they lose to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals, would absorb another memorable disappointment. The franchise would have to face another stinging setback, a moment reminiscent of the 2012 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat.
Another failure against LeBron James — after rallying to defeat the San Antonio Spurs in six games with a coach who was roundly doubted going into a steel-cage match against Gregg Popovich — would never leave the minds of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka, the men who have endured so many battles as the foremost leaders of this organization.
Such an experience would unleash a torrent of emotions too turbulent and complicated for the rest of us to understand.
And yet…
And yet, on Monday, May 16, 2016, the very idea of losing to the Cavs in the Finals (which start on June 2) would mean something very simple for the Thunder. It would mean that they will have produced the greatest NBA playoff run for any non-championship team in league history.
The debate wouldn’t be close, either.
This neatly captures the immensity of the opportunity standing in front of the Thunder as they begin the Western Conference Finals against the Golden State Warriors.
Feb 6, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) shoots the ball in front of Golden State Warriors forward Harrison Barnes (40) in the fourth quarter at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
The nature of the NBA — in conjunction with one specific, simple reality from its history — reinforces a basic fact: The greatest regular season teams generally do win championships. Phrased differently, this ain’t hockey.
The NBA has produced 12 teams which have won at least 67 regular season games. Of those 12 teams, 11 have completed their seasons, playoffs included. Golden State is the 12th. Among the 11 members of “The 67 Club,” eight won the NBA title. This is entirely in keeping with the nature of professional basketball in the United States.
In the NBA, the most formidable teams typically establish the kind of standard which is highly difficult for inferior opponents to overcome in a best-of-seven series. Challengers typically taste defeat at a high level before (or if) they push through and win the championship in a subsequent season. This has been the law of the NBA jungle for decades. It is the antithesis of the NHL, where only two of the past 14 teams with the best regular-season record have won the Stanley Cup (this season included).
It’s safe to say that if any NBA team can win a playoff series against an opponent with 67 or more regular season wins, it has done something phenomenal.
Therefore, the Oklahoma City Thunder — not yet in the NBA Finals, not yet given the chance to play LeBron James for Kevin Durant’s and Russell Westbrook’s first Larry O’Brien Trophy — are still playing for a remarkable and unprecedented piece of NBA immortality against Golden State.
The specific idea hasn’t even been directly stated, and yet, you know exactly what it is: Very plainly, Oklahoma City can become the first NBA team to defeat two members of “The 67 Club” in one postseason. The Thunder could defeat 140 wins — two teams which averaged 70 wins — if they can knock out the Warriors over the next two weeks.
They could do so with a bench boss who had never previously coached in the NBA, either as a head man or as an assistant. Billy Donovan might have been the head coach of the Orlando Magic for a few minutes nearly a decade ago, but he never coached the team… not even in the Summer League. Nearly everyone (not 100 percent of the league, but an overwhelming majority) thought he couldn’t outcoach Gregg Popovich, but Billy D. showed he was a quick study. Most will think he can’t outflank a Pop protege, Steve Kerr, in this series. Yet, the San Antonio conquest should offer more than enough evidence to suggest that Donovan should no longer be underestimated.
No team has ever done what the 2016 Oklahoma City Thunder have a chance to do these next two weeks.
For a series which isn’t the NBA Finals, the Western Conference Finals carries an enormous amount of historical resonance and possibility.
