Just a few weeks ago, people were speculating whether the Oklahoma City Thunder could surpass the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors’ win record. Those hopes have come crashing down after three matchups against the San Antonio Spurs. The Thunder seem to have found their kryptonite.
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Ever since Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama’s first matchup, the NBA has attempted to market them as rivals. Fortunately for Adam Silver, the two have developed a competitive rivalry with each other.
It’s easy to put them in the same conversations due to their skill level and physical builds. However, Wembanyama has proved in these three matchups that there is a clear discrepancy between the two.
Wemby has been on a minutes restriction while coming off the bench, yet has still outperformed Holmgren. In the first matchup in the NBA Cup, Chet finished with 17 points and 7 rebounds. He followed that performance with just 7 points in their second matchup. Their most recent battle wasn’t much better either, as he finished with only 10 points.
The Thunder’s weakness was on full display, particularly with Holmgren. NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins didn’t hold back when speaking on Holmgren following his recent performance.
“I gotta get on Chet for a minute,” Perkins said on ESPN’s Get Up. “He’s playing soft in this matchup. Victor Wembanyama wants the smoke. [Chet] is ducking that smoke right now.”
Wembanyama has played no more than 25 minutes per game against the Thunder in their three matchups. Nonetheless, he has thrived against Holmgren. He has put up 22 points in 20 minutes, 12 points in 23 minutes and 19 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes.
These stat lines don’t jump off the page. However, Wemby’s intensity in these games has blown Holmgren out of the water, which is a big issue in Perkins’ eyes.
“Chet gotta come with it the next time they play the Spurs. It might be in the postseason, but he’s gotta come with it. Right now, the Spurs are punking the Thunder and making them look soft,” Perkins proclaimed.
Luckily, these two teams will face off two more times for the remainder of the season. Their next game will take place on January 13 in Oklahoma City, and the final in San Antonio on February 4.
Those two games will allow the Thunder and Holmgren to turn these narratives around. If they fail to do so, we may be seeing OKC’s dynasty aspirations vanish before our very eyes.
