The Spurs swept the Thunder, facing their own enhanced version.

Of the five Christmas Day matchups, the Thunder vs. Spurs game had the lowest ticket prices, reflecting Oklahoma’s status as a less prosperous region. Yet, when it comes to the level of excitement, this game was undoubtedly one of the best.

Before today, the Spurs were on a seven-game winning streak (not counting the NBA Cup final), with a different top scorer in each game. This had only happened once before in NBA history, with the 2012 Spurs. The whole team was in a great atmosphere and held a significant psychological edge over the Thunder.

In the NBA Cup, Vembayana returned and had a huge impact on both ends of the court, delivering clutch plays that defeated the Thunder. Two days ago, Vembayana scored only 12 points and had no blocks, but the Spurs still managed to beat the Thunder thanks to over 20 points each from Castle, Barnes, and Keldon Johnson. The rest contributed on both offense and defense, showcasing true team basketball.

The Thunder started today’s game perfectly, hitting all seven of their first seven shots, including making all four of their initial three-point attempts. Dort unusually made 2 out of 2 threes (before missing five straight), and the Thunder grabbed the early lead with a hot shooting streak.

But the Spurs remained unfazed, responding to every Thunder three-pointer. The Thunder’s best shooting stretch came when Fox scored 13 points in a quarter, hitting all three of his threes, despite scoring only 6 points against the Thunder in the previous game. In three games against the Thunder, the Spurs had different players stepping up each time.

After the first quarter, the Thunder trailed the Spurs by 5 points, with the Spurs scoring 41 in that period, putting the Thunder’s defense under immense pressure. Meanwhile, once Vembayana entered the game, the Thunder’s offensive efficiency quickly declined.

The Spurs won all three quarters, holding a 16-point lead after the third. Although the fourth quarter was not garbage time, the Thunder failed to make the game competitive again. Thus, the Spurs completed a clean sweep of the Thunder, winning all three games decisively.

After the game, Thunder coach D’Agnot said, “I don’t think this was a matter of shots falling or not. They executed better than us and overall played superior basketball—that’s why they won.”

A single game loss can be blamed on luck; two losses might be due to poor form. But losing three straight games clearly shows a gap in strength. The reason the Spurs kept dominating the Thunder is that in almost every aspect, they are like an upgraded version of the Thunder.

The Thunder’s specialty is aggressive defense, but the Spurs aren’t intimidated because they have just as many, if not more, skilled ball handlers who are younger and faster. The Thunder also faced injury problems: Mitchell, who started the season strong, missed both games against the Spurs, and with Jewell’s poor form after returning, the Thunder’s offense collapsed after Alexander went out.

The Spurs’ three guards—Castle, Fox, and Harper—completely dismantled the Thunder’s perimeter pressure defense, cutting off the Thunder’s fast-break opportunities. This forced both teams into half-court battles, where the Thunder fell into the massive traps set by Vembayana.

Vembayana effectively limited Alexander’s inside scoring; today Alexander only attempted four shots near the basket and struggled from mid-range, finishing 7 of 19 overall. Vembayana had just one block, which came from Wiggins’ reckless attempt that was slammed off the backboard. In the previous game, Vembayana had no blocks, which actually highlights his intimidating rim protection that forces Thunder players to shoot from afar.

The Thunder are not particularly strong at three-point shooting. Although their three-point percentage ranks sixth in the league, it is unstable, and overall their three-point shooting is average. After hitting four straight threes at the start today, the Thunder managed only 7 out of 40 from beyond the arc for the rest of the game.

In the last game, the Thunder shot decently from three, making 12 of 30 attempts (40%), but the Spurs had an even better three-point percentage at 44.4%.

Including the NBA Cup game, the Thunder shot only 24.3% from three-point range. Over three games, the Spurs consistently outshot the Thunder from deep and played superior defense, so their three consecutive wins are not surprising from a statistical perspective.

The Thunder’s trademark perimeter pressure combined with Chet’s inside dominance was completely neutralized by the Spurs. Chet struggled badly against Vembayana, scoring only 17 points in the last two games combined. Once a formidable duo, they are now clearly on different levels.

I think after the Thunder’s 24-1 start, the widespread talk about them possibly surpassing the historic 73-win mark affected the players’ mindset somewhat. Coincidentally, they ran into a Spurs team that completely countered them during this period, causing the Thunder to play below their early-season form.

Since returning, Jewell has averaged only 17.6 points, 5 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game, a noticeable drop from last season’s 21.6 points per game. Dort, Caruso, and Wallace have all seen declines in their three-point shooting, especially Dort, who dropped by 10 percentage points. Caruso’s 12-for-2 from three today was particularly disappointing.

The Thunder are still one of the strongest teams in the league and remained champions before their downfall. But now they face a real challenge from an opponent capable of pushing them in a series. On January 14, they will meet again, and the outcome could determine whether the Thunder make moves before the trade deadline.

For the Spurs, their true strength lies not just in having Vembayana but in their ability to play beautiful team basketball even with him on the floor—this is reminiscent of the peak Spurs era.