LAS VEGAS – Victor Wembanyama sprinted through the halls of T-Mobile Arena, flexing his muscles and yelling at anyone who’d listen.
When he reached San Antonio’s locker room, he was greeted by his rowdy teammates. And they proceeded to blast Miley Cyrus’ “Party In The U.S.A.,” the victory song of choice for a team that had just earned a 111-109 win over OKC in the NBA Cup semifinals Saturday night.
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That music could be heard all the way down the hall, piercing the otherwise-silent setting inside the Thunder’s interview room. But even though there weren’t any celebrations going on in there, there was some excitement.
It came from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who didn’t hang his head while he answered questions after the tournament thriller. A narrow defeat that snapped a franchise-record winning streak of 16 games. He held it high, proudly sporting the metaphorical black eye of a rare lost fight.
“It is,” Gilgeous-Alexander said when asked if it feels weird for the 24-2 Thunder to finally lose. “But personally, I think it’s exciting. It’s easier to learn when you don’t feel the way you want to feel. It stings a little bit more. … Losing is where you find growth and where you really get better. This team has done a good job of that so far.”
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Even in Las Vegas, OKC holds all of the cards.
The Thunder has an embarrassment of riches. It has the reigning MVP in Gilgeous-Alexander. It has two more stars in Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren. It has the deepest roster in the NBA and a treasure trove of future draft picks stashed away.
But OKC’s young players are far from trust-fund babies. They grew up on a plastic spoon during the infancy of their build, recycling losses until they turned them into wins. And they understand that poor behavior isn’t rewarded in the NBA.
That was the case Saturday, as OKC claimed a 31-20 lead at the end of the first quarter but was outscored in each of the remaining three. And even though effort wasn’t a problem, fundamentals were.
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From ill-advised shots to uncharacteristic turnovers to soul-crushing second-chance points given up, the Thunder didn’t do enough to win. It knows that.
“We can’t be spoiled,” said Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 29 points but committed a season-high five turnovers. “We can’t think we’re above anything. Us along with every team in the league, if you show up on a night and don’t do the necessary things to win, you probably won’t win. No matter how talented (you are). No matter what your record looks like. And that was the case tonight.
“Especially after the first quarter, they brought the fight and really controlled the game on both ends. They deserved to win.”
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – DECEMBER 13: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder is guarded by Stephon Castle #5 of the San Antonio Spurs in the first quarter of a semifinal game of the Emirates NBA Cup at T-Mobile Arena on December 13, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Saturday marked OKC’s first time facing San Antonio this season.
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And while it failed to come out on top, it’ll soon get two more chances to pass. The Thunder will face the Spurs on the road on Dec. 23. It’ll then host them on Dec. 25 in a highly-anticipated Christmas Day game.
“It’s like an automatic test you take in school,” Gilgeous-Alexander said with a smile. “If you fail the test, you get to retest a couple of days later. That’s what it’ll probably feel like.”
OKC will have to study hard until then. Not just on Wembanyama, who racked up 22 points and nine rebounds in only 21 minutes throughout his first game back since Nov. 14, but in San Antonio’s stellar guards as well.
De’Aaron Fox. Stephon Castle. Devin Vassell. Dylan Harper. All of them stood their ground defensively, forcing the Thunder’s locomotive offense to come to a screeching halt at times.
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OKC shot a season-low 41% from the field. It also shot 24% from deep, which marked its third-lowest percentage. And it was held to fewer than 110 points for the first time since Nov. 15.
Williams especially struggled on offense, scoring 17 points on only 5-for-16 shooting from the field (31.3%). But just like Gilgeous-Alexander, the All-NBA forward found value in the adversity.
“Similar to us, they play really physically, which is fun to play against,” Williams said. “It makes us better as a team. They have good guards who take pride in defense. Any time you get to play teams like that, it’s fun. It makes you better.”
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OKC continues to show a willingness to face hurdles, even if it sometimes falls flat on its face. That can happen when said hurdle is a 7-foot-4 Wembanyama.
But that mentality is what allowed the Thunder to clear the biggest hurdle of them all last season: Its first championship in franchise history. And as OKC prepares for another two meetings with San Antonio in the next two weeks, it won’t just be ready for the challenge.
It’ll be excited for it.
“I’m looking forward to playing them more times to get better throughout the season,” Williams said.
Justin Martinez covers the Thunder and NBA for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Justin? He can be reached at jmartinez@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at @Justintohoops. Sign up for the Thunder Sports Minute newsletter to access more NBA coverage. Support Justin’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Thunder looking forward to ‘retest’ against Spurs after NBA Cup loss