OKC Thunder’s Potential First-Round Playoff Opponents

For the second consecutive season, the Oklahoma City Thunder has earned the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. As such, OKC will host a first-round series against the No. 8 seed in the West, which will be a team that won’t be determined until a few days after the end of the regular season.

That’s because the NBA Play-In Tournament will determine the No. 8 seed that will play OKC in the first round. As such, while the Thunder has already solidified its position within the Western Conference standings, the results of the Play-In Tournament will be something the team is keeping a close eye on.

How OKC’s Opponent is Determined

The Play-In Tournament features the teams that finish No. 7 through No. 10 in each conference and determines the teams that fill the seventh and eighth playoff seeds in each conference for the 2025 NBA playoffs. It takes place April 15 – April 18, meaning it takes place in the days leading up to the playoffs, which start on April 19.

This tournament is a two-round event, with two of the four teams from each conference advancing.

• Each conference’s No. 7 team in the standings will host the No. 8 team. The winners secure the No. 7 seed in the playoffs. The losers will get another chance to earn a playoff spot.
• Each conference’s No. 9 team in the standings will host the No. 10 team. The winners will advance to the final stage of the Play-In Tournament. The losers are eliminated.
• The losers of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 matchups will host the winners of the No. 9 vs. No. 10 matchups. The winners secure the No. 8 seed in the NBA playoffs for its conference. The losing teams are eliminated.

Based on this format, the Thunder’s opponent in round one will have to play two games in order to get to that No. 8 seed.

Who Are the Possible Opponents

The Thunder won’t know its first-round opponent until just a few days before the start of the first round. Much will unfold between now and then, but a handful of opponents are still on the shortlist of potential candidates.

Here are the current Western Conference standings for the teams that, in theory, could end up in the Play-In Tournament, meaning a potential first-round opponent for the Thunder.

4. Los Angeles Lakers (45-29)

5. Memphis Grizzlies (44-30)

6. Golden State Warriors (43-31)

7. Minnesota Timberwolves (43-32)

8. LA Clippers (42-32)

9. Dallas Mavericks (37-38)

10. Sacramento Kings (36-38)

11. Phoenix Suns (35-40)

Of these eight teams, the Lakers and Grizzlies are the least likely to fall into that Play-In range and out of the top six. But beyond that, anything could happen. That means there’s a real chance that — as of today — the Warriors, Timberwolves, Clippers, Mavericks, Kings and Suns are all realistic options for OKC’s opening round.

Golden State and Minnesota would both be extremely tough first-round matchups, given how talented these two teams are, not to mention the playoff experience they bring. Dallas and LA would both pose a challenge with the personnel on the respective rosters, but they would be opponents who shouldn’t push Oklahoma City too hard as an opening opponent. The best-case, but most unlikely, scenario would be Sacramento or Phoenix, as both of those squads are multiple games below .500 and have struggled tremendously this season.

Regardless, it’s all a waiting game at this point. There are still just under two weeks until the end of the regular season, followed by the Play-In Tournament in mid-April when Oklahoma City will find out its first-round opponent, just days before Game 1.