It was a history-making Sunday for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In its final game of a successful yet slightly surprising 57-win campaign, it became the youngest team to achieve both that win count and a No. 1 seed in a season. With an average age of 23.9 years old — increased heavily by the addition of Gordon Hayward — Oklahoma City is accomplishing things unprecedented for the stage its at.
The Dallas Mavericks had little opportunity to prevent that from happening. Most of their roster rested last night, including its star guard duo of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. This led to a 49-point loss, but one that ultimately mattered less for Dallas.
It was a combined effort for the Thunder, with all of its starting lineup receiving less than 20 minutes of playing time. The leader was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 15 points, followed by Aaron Wiggins’ 14 points.
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Here are three takeaways from the 135-86 win:
Apr 14, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) and
Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports
1. Bring the Thunder
If yesterday’s win proved anything, it was that Oklahoma City is ready to embark on a playoff run.
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The Thunder went on a five-game win streak to finish out the regular season, allowing the returning Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams to get comfortable after dealing with minor injuries. The roster is fully ready to head into its first shot at the Larry O’Brien since the “bubble season” of 2020, with the highest expectations its had since the days of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant.
The pieces to the puzzle have fully come together, too. Gilgeous-Alexander has clearly been at the top of the MVP contention ladder, Chet Holmgren has been the second-best performing rookie of the year and Jalen Williams has made the expected sophomore jump, but it’s clicking even beyond that.
Josh Giddey played possibly his worst stretch of basketball of his entire career on multiple occasions throughout the season, but finally got back to his confident play in the final few weeks. Bench pieces such as Cason Wallace, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins have been crucial pieces to Oklahoma City’s success, while the newest addition of Gordon Hayward has finally started to get comfortable.
No matter the age, inexperience or matchup, the Thunder is going to be the team that the Western Conference runs through. It’s hard to place exact expectations on a team with these circumstances, but as its proved all season long, you can’t count it out.
2. OKC has Depth
Although the playoffs tend to be the time for coaches to shorten the rotation, Oklahoma City certainly has the depth to last in the playoffs.
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Due to the circumstances of a depleted Dallas lineup, the Thunder starters hardly had to play to secure one of the biggest blowout victories of the year. That allowed the bench unit to step in and do most of the damage, scoring 85 of the 135 total points.
Wiggins’ 14 points led the way for the bench, followed up by Ousmane Dieng’s 13, Wallace and Lindy Waters III’s 12. Wiggins and Wallace will certainly be the top pieces that come off the bench, but Dieng and Waters showed the potential to make an impact, even if the possibility is far more unlikely.
Teams never want to think about the possibility of their top players getting injured in the playoffs, but it can happen at anytime. If Gilgeous-Alexander fell it would be a much different story, but if players lower on the ladder came down with an injury, Oklahoma City would have plenty of options to retain the same production.
3. Potential First Round Matchups
Even though the Thunder has the No. 1 seed locked up, it won’t know its first round matchup until after the Play-In Tournament.
The four teams featured in the tournament in order are the New Orleans Pelicans, Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors. It includes teams that have previous playoff experience with superstar talent, so no matter the matchup, it won’t be a cakewalk for Oklahoma City.
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As great as the Thunder has been throughout the entire season, it doesn’t have a player with the legendary status as a LeBron James or Stephen Curry. Those players alone can pose a serious challenge, even if their rosters are relatively weaker all-around. It certainly has the capability of beating those four teams, but it may not be as much of a shock if it fell in the first round.
Oklahoma City will set it eyes on its opponent after Friday, when the Play-In comes to a close.
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PHILADELPHIA – It was evident in July and August that Dallas Goedert was going to be a big part of the Eagles’ offense in the red zone. It felt that way most summers, but this time, with first-year offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo in place, the Eagles are dialing up plays for the tight end.
“I think when I get a ball in my hand down there, I’m tough to tackle, I can find my way in, fight my way in,” said Goedert. “It’s just that our red-zone philosophy has changed a bit. We used to run a lot, a lot of quarterback sneaks, things like that down there. We’ve tried to find ways to get me the ball, which is really cool, and I’m gonna keep trying to make them work.”
So far, Goedert has nine touchdown catches. According to NFL Research, five of his touchdowns were thrown behind the line of scrimmage this season, the most by a non-running back in the Next Gen era.
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“He’s such a physical guy,” said Patullo. “His determination to just get yards and have an impact on anything, whether it’s in the pass game, whether it’s gadgets, whatever it may be. He’s really dynamic with the ball in his hands. So anytime you can get the ball in his hands, obviously, that’s what we’re going to try to do.”
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However, the touchdown math didn’t add up for Goedert. He thought eight was the magic number to break the record for most TD catches by a tight end in franchise history, owned by Pete Retzlaff, but Retzlaff had 10 in 1965, meaning Goedert needs one more to break that dusty, 60-year-old mark.
“I thought it was eight, but I was wrong, so I thought I already had it,” he said.
Reminded that he would have had it already had he not dropped a wide-open throw to him in the end zone on Sunday, which would have given him a career-high three in one game, he winced, then answered.
“Yeah, scars right there,” he said. “That one hurts.”
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Dallas Goedert Has Eye On Record
Dec 14, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert (88) walks off the field after win against the Las Vegas Raiders at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
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With three games left, and with his heavy involvement in the red zone, it is reasonable to expect that the record will at least be tied, perhaps even broken.
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“It’s pretty cool,” he said. “Anytime you can break a record, obviously things are going well for you. Obviously, winning is the most important thing and I want to do whatever I can to help win. If they’re giving me the ball down there, I’m gonna try to score. It would be a cool thing to have.”
Goedert’s production in the low red zone is a reason the Eagles lead the NFL in red-zone success, converting close to 70 percent of their trips (25-for-36) inside the 20 into touchdowns. The tight end has nine of those 25 red-zone TDs.
“We’ve had different things for me in the red zone throughout my career here, a lot of them just haven’t got called,” said Goedert. “Once they started calling them, I tried to make sure they worked so they could keep designing and calling other ones. Any time you go in the huddle and hear that play, knowing you have the opportunity to get in the end zone, it gets you kind of excited, for sure.”
Nore NFL: Eagles’ Backup Staying Patient, Takes First-Team Practice Reps
The Dallas Stars start up a brief two-game road trip on Thursday with a game against the San Jose Sharks.
Here’s everything to know about the matchup.
Dallas Stars at San Jose Sharks
When: Thursday, 9 p.m.
Sports Roundup
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Where: SAP Center, San Jose
TV/Streaming: Victory+
Radio: Sportsradio 96.7/1310 The Ticket
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Bottom line
The San Jose Sharks host the Dallas Stars after Macklin Celebrini scored two goals in the Sharks’ 6-3 win over the Calgary Flames.
San Jose has a 10-5-3 record in home games and a 17-14-3 record overall. The Sharks have a 15-4-2 record when scoring at least three goals.
Dallas is 22-7-5 overall and 11-2-4 on the road. The Stars have a 12-1-2 record in games their opponents commit more penalties.
The teams meet Thursday for the second time this season. The Stars won the previous matchup 4-1.
Top performers
Jason Robertson has 20 goals and 20 assists for the Stars. Wyatt Johnston has scored five goals and added nine assists over the last 10 games.
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Celebrini has 18 goals and 33 assists for the Sharks. Tyler Toffoli has five goals and six assists over the past 10 games.
Last 10 games
Stars: 7-2-1, averaging 3.1 goals, 5.2 assists, 3.7 penalties and 8.9 penalty minutes while giving up two goals per game.
Sharks: 6-4-0, averaging 3.4 goals, 6.1 assists, 3.9 penalties and 7.8 penalty minutes while giving up 3.3 goals per game.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Letters to the Editor — Christianity, Hanukkah, the ’60s, Indiana, Dallas Stars
Readers comment on a column about Christianity; remember being a Vietnam veteran in the ’60s; praise Indiana; and are critical of the Dallas Stars’ probable move to Plano.
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Stars defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok claimed off waivers by Bruins
The Stars had acquired Kolyachonok in a trade with Pittsburgh for Matt Dumba over the summer.
Dallas Stars learning old hockey adage — good things happen when you put pucks on net
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Find more Stars coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett will introduce Dallas hip-hop collective Cure for Paranoia at its upcoming album release show in Deep Ellum, according to frontman Cameron McCloud. The Dallas Observer reported the news first.
“I just said I’d love for her to be at the show if she was in town,” McCloud said in a text message. “She didn’t even have to come up if she didn’t want to and she said ‘Oh no, I’m definitely getting on stage.’”
Crockett, a Dallas Democrat, catapulted into the national spotlight in 2024 after a tense exchange with fellow U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene at a House committee meeting. She has since been regarded as a progressive firebrand, frequently in the headlines for heated back-and-forths with politicians across the aisle.
Crockett also recently launched a bid for the U.S. Senate, promoting her campaign in an Instagram video with McCloud, who wrote a verse about her. He has posted new raps every day this year.
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“Who else willing to go toe to toe against the president?” he recited in Day No. 343’s verse, adding a later nod to Crockett’s viral remarks about Greene: “Texas tough don’t need no more bad built bleach blonde butch bodies moving forward.”
Crockett discovered McCloud through social media.
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“I started listening and thought ‘Man, he’s a genius.’ I was impressed by his ability to sum up what’s going on in under a minute and with accuracy,” she said in a statement. “Especially at a time when people are not listening to traditional news and the easiest thing to do is keep scrolling, Cure captures people’s attention. I was floored to know that not only was he a Texan but a Dallasite.”
Crockett, who has a penchant for alliteration in her speeches, teased a potential performance during her introduction. “I’m known to drop some bars from time to time so you’ll just have to be there and see.”
Cure for Paranoia’s show will be on Dec. 26 at Trees. It will be pegged to the group’s new album, Work of A.R.T., which is slated for release on Dec. 22.
Details
Tickets cost $30.35. 7 to 11 p.m. on Dec. 26. 2709 Elm St., Dallas. For more information, visit treesdallas.com/shows/cure-for-paranoia.
Romeo Santos, Prince Royce headed to Dallas on 2026 tour
They will be performing at American Airlines Center as part of their “Mejor Tarde Que Nunca” (“Better Late Than Never”) tour.
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Texas A&M sophomore Aiden Ross wins ‘The Voice’ season 28
The College Station native is studying industrial engineering at the university.
