THUNDER WIRE - After waiting nearly a week, the Oklahoma City Thunder will only need to wait a couple more days to find out their Round 2 opponent. The LA Clippers forced a Game 7 after they beat the Denver Nuggets in a 111-105 Game 6 win on Thursday.

In a do-or-die situation, Kawhi Leonard had 27 points and James Harden had 28 points. Norman Powell was the wildcard with 24 points. Meanwhile, Nikola Jokic was limited to 25 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. The decisive Round 1 game will be played on Saturday, May 3.

After a blowout loss in Game 5, the Clippers recovered with a complete effort in a 111-105 win on Thursday at the Intuit Dome to force a winner-take-all game Saturday in Denver. The winner’s reward: a date with the No. 1-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Clippers’ basic formula for success wound up being their usual plan A, with a little more help from Nicolas Batum. Kawhi Leonard and James Harden took the lion’s share of the usage on offense to great effect, Norman Powell burst through when they needed another look and Ivica Zubac controlled the paint on both ends of the floor.

Powell in particular kept the Clippers ahead when Denver threatened a comeback after being down 15 points midway through the fourth quarter, plus some questionable play from old friend Russell Westbrook.

Powell finished the game with 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting, while Leonard had 27 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and Harden had 28 points and eight assists.

Zubac’s impact was more felt in Nikola Jokić’s numbers. The threetime MVP was held to five points, two rebounds and four assists in the second half. The Nuggets outscored the Clippers by only one point with him on the floor, and this team has won very few games this season by outscoring the opposition in the non-Jokić minutes.

That difference was most felt in the third quarter, when a 12-0 Clippers run pushed them up double- digits. The Nuggets cut that lead to as little as five down the stretch, but it wasn’t enough to avoid a Game 7.

That means the Game 7 winner will enter OKC for Game 1 with one or two days of rest, depending on how the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets Game 6 plays out. If that series ends in six games, the Thunder will host Game 1 on Tuesday, May 6. If it goes to a seventh game, the Thunder will host Game 1 on Monday, May 5.

Either way, the Thunder should enter their Round 2 matchup as a favorite. A relatively easy Round 1 sweep of the Memphis Grizzlies gave them ample time to rest and recover.

One of the greatest regular- season squads has continued their dominance through the first round of the 2025 NBA playoffs.

TICKET RAFFLE Oklahoma City, Thursday, May 1, 2025 – The Oklahoma City Thunder and OG&E have teamed up again to offer fans a chance to win a playoffs package for Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals at Paycom Center. The winner of the Thunder Playoffs Raffle energized by OG&E, will score four tickets in a Terrace Suite, food, and exclusive early doors access to watch Thunder pregame warmups. Raffle tickets start at $5 with proceeds benefiting the Thunder Community Foundation. OG&E will match raffle proceeds for the Foundation up to $15,000.

The Thunder will play the winner of the Denver/ LA Clippers series, with conference semifinals set to begin either Monday, May 5 or Tuesday, May 6. Game 2 will either be Wednesday, May 7 or Thursday, May 8.

“We are excited to energize Thunder fans by sending a lucky person to Western Conference semifinals playoff game,” said Christi Woodworth, vice president of Marketing & Communications for OG&E. “Together, we can make a difference for young people in our community through the Thunder Community Foundation’s raffle proceeds. So, keep cheering for the Thunder and keep buying raffle tickets!”

Proceeds from the round 1 raffle along with the OG&E match totaled more than $45,000.

The mission of the Thunder Community Foundation is to positively impact youth in the communities where they live and play. Since 2009, the Foundation has provided financial resources to renovate spaces for nonprofits that serve youth to expand opportunities for academic enrichment and other essential services in underserved areas. In addition, the Foundation has installed or refurbished 31 basketball courts in 17 counties across Oklahoma.

The deadline to enter the raffle is Tuesday, May 6 at 12 p.m. To learn more or purchase raffle tickets, visit okcthunder.com/playoffsraffle.

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