{"id":299012,"date":"2026-05-19T01:38:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T01:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/299012\/"},"modified":"2026-05-19T01:38:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T01:38:10","slug":"spurs-vs-thunder-score-live-updates-how-to-watch-nba-mvp-shai-gilgeous-alexander-dpoy-victor-wembanyama-face-off-in-game-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/299012\/","title":{"rendered":"Spurs vs. Thunder score, live updates, how to watch: NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, DPOY Victor Wembanyama face off in Game 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals<\/a> between the San Antonio Spurs<\/a> and the Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> tips off Monday night.<\/p>\n

These Western Conference opponents met five times during the regular season, including an extra matchup in the 2026 NBA Cup. San Antonio<\/a> had Oklahoma City<\/a>\u2019s number in their regular-season series, winning four of the five matchups.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

The Thunder finished the regular season with the league\u2019s best record, 64-18, having advanced to the conference finals<\/a> relatively well-rested after back-to-back sweeps<\/a> of the Phoenix Suns<\/a> and the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> on the back of star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a>, who just took home his second consecutive NBA MVP award<\/a>.<\/p>\n

San Antonio had a slightly more drawn-out path to get to this stage of the postseason. As the No. 2 seed in the West, the Spurs beat the Portland Trail Blazers<\/a> in the first round in five games and needed six games to advance past the Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a> in the conference semifinals, led by unanimous Defensive Player of the Year Victor<\/a> Wembanyama.<\/p>\n

Play 2026 Soccer Pick ‘Em with FOX One and make your picks for the world’s biggest soccer tournament<\/a><\/p>\n

Ahead of Game 1, the Thunder are -260 favorites to win the series and -170 odds to win the Larry O\u2019Brien<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Spurs-Thunder start time: 8:30 p.m. ET
Location: Paycom Center | Oklahoma City
TV channel: NBC
Live stream: Peacock<\/p>\n

Follow along with Yahoo Sports as the San Antonio Spurs travel to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals.<\/p>\n

Live19 updatesMon, May 18, 2026 at 6:30 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 6:25 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

This is a play that only Victor Wembanyama makes.<\/p>\n

The Spurs star caught a ball in the post with his back to the basket and two OKC defenders around him. In the same motion, he reached up and threw down a dunk between both defenders while barely leaving his feet.<\/p>\n

After allowing the Thunder back in, the Spurs have reseized control with a 42-35 lead.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 6:17 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

With Dylan Harper replacing the injured De\u2019Aaron Fox, the Spurs have the youngest starting lineup in conference finals history tonight. So far, it\u2019s led San Antonio to a 36-29 second-quarter lead.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 6:07 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

After digging an 11-2 deficit, OKC went on a 9-0 run and took a 22-19 lead late in the first. And the game will go into the second quarter tied at 27 after an entertaining first.<\/p>\n

Alex Caruso and Jalen Williams have 10 points each for OKC. Stephon Castle leads San Antonio with 11, while Wemby has six points and five rebounds.<\/p>\n

A hot start to the most anticipated series of the playoffs.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 5:53 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

The Thunder are struggling early, but Alex Caruso is singlehandedly keeping them afloat.<\/p>\n

He has all seven Thunder points as the Spurs have jumped out to a 12-7 lead. And now he\u2019s guarding Wemby, giving up nearly a foot in height advantage in the process.<\/p>\n

No proble for Caruso, who just picked off a pass intended for Wemby for a transition layup on the other end.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 5:48 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

The Spurs are off to a 3-of-9 start from the field, but they\u2019re dominating the ball. At the first TV timeout, San Antonio already has a 9-2 rebounding edge and an 11-3 lead.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 5:44 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

The Thunder started 0-for-4 from the floor as the Spurs jumped out to a 7-0 lead. And Thunder fans don\u2019t sit down until the first OKC bucket.<\/p>\n

Alex Caruso gave them a reprieve with a 3-pointer at the 8:45 mark for the first Thunder points of the game.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 5:41 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

So far, so good for the Spurs. Stephon Castle opened the game with a 3. Victor Wembanyama then drew a foul on a jump shot for a pair of free throws and followed that up with a putback layup for a 7-0 San Antonio lead.<\/p>\n

A good start for a Spurs team playing without starting point guard De\u2019Aaron Fox.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 5:36 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

Conference finals matchups don\u2019t get much bigger than this. We\u2019re moments away from tip of the most anticipated series of the playoffs. Let\u2019s go.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 5:33 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

Speaking of MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander \u2026 He was just awarded his trophy from commissioner Adam Silver prior to Game 1 introductions. This is officially a habit for the now two-time NBA MVP.<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, May 18, 2026 at 5:30 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

With De\u2019Aaron Fox out<\/a>, Dylan Harper will start in the San Antonio backcourt for the biggest game yet of his rookie season.<\/p>\n

What a spot for the standout guard with MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander staring back at him from the Thunder backcourt and a trip to the NBA Finals at stake.<\/p>\n

\"RyanMon, May 18, 2026 at 4:38 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Ryan Young<\/p>\n

The Spurs will be without De\u2019Aaron Fox tonight against the Thunder due to his right ankle injury. The hope, though, is that he can return on Wednesday night.<\/p>\n

Mon, May 18, 2026 at 4:30 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Nekias Duncan, Steve Jones<\/p>\n

\"TomMon, May 18, 2026 at 4:15 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Tom Haberstroh<\/p>\n

San Antonio Spurs<\/a> center Victor Wembanyama<\/a> made history last week.<\/p>\n

With 12 blocks in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a>, the 22-year-old broke the official NBA record for most blocked shots in a playoff game.<\/p>\n

Wemby\u2019s block party came in a losing effort, but the team\u2019s official social media account made sure to shout out the remarkable performance, posting<\/a> a list of his Game 1 achievements, leading with the big one: \u201cMost blocks ever in an NBA Playoffs game.\u201d<\/p>\n

From social media to national TV airwaves, Wembanyama\u2019s historic defensive outing was a major talking point in NBA circles. The 7-foot-4 center had done something no other player had done before.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s just one problem.<\/p>\n

Credible evidence is mounting that Wilt Chamberlain blocked way more shots in an NBA playoff game. There are documented reports that he bested Wembanyama\u2019s \u201cofficial record\u201d multiple times.<\/p>\n

Read more.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"KellyMon, May 18, 2026 at 4:00 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Kelly Iko<\/p>\n

During the regular season, the Spurs were 14th in 3s attempted (37.9) and 15th in conversion rate (35.9%). In the playoffs, their frequency has dipped (32.5), but their efficiency has jumped (38.4%, third-best). This is in part due to Castle\u2019s improvement, as well as the presence of Julian Champagnie<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Thunder utilize a very compact defensive shell, keeping all five players close to one another to protect the rim, funnel action toward the middle and cause chaos. What that does, because no scheme is foolproof, is leave the corners exposed. Second Spectrum defines \u201copen\u201d shots as ones where the closest defender is four-to-six feet away; Oklahoma City allows the third-most such shots per game<\/a>, but because opponents are shooting just 35.4% on those, the gamble pays off more times than not. The Spurs, tied with the Knicks<\/a>, led the league in corner 3s<\/a> during the regular season and shot nearly 40%, good for eighth among all teams. In the playoffs, however, those numbers have plummeted, taking less corner 3s and converting only 33% of them<\/a>, which is fourth-worst among playoff teams.<\/p>\n

Getting more production out of Devin Vassell<\/a> is a good start, but the Spurs will need to clean that up or else Oklahoma City will hammer them in the half-court.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Spurs-Thunder preview<\/a><\/p>\n

\"KateMon, May 18, 2026 at 3:45 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Kate Magdziuk<\/p>\n

The San Antonio Spurs selected Rutgers rookie Dylan Harper with the second overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft \u2026 and after a relatively quiet regular season, averaging 11.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game, he\u2019s emerged as a key contributor in the postseason.<\/p>\n

Through 11 playoff games, Harper is shooting 56.6% from the field, with two games of 24-plus points and two double-doubles. Harper had just two 24-point efforts without a single double-double in the 2025-26 regular season as a rookie.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s tied with Timberwolves\u2019 Naz Reid to lead all players with 151 points off the bench this postseason, while having played 46 fewer minutes. \ud83d\ude33 Will he keep it up in Game 1?<\/p>\n

Mon, May 18, 2026 at 3:30 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

NBA fans are all getting the series they were hoping for: A Western Conference finals collision between the Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> and the San Antonio Spurs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

These teams make up the NBA\u2019s budding preeminent rivalry and already played five times in the regular season \u2014 one extra game because of an NBA Cup semifinal \u2014 and are set for at least another four.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s one of my favorite player prop bets for Game 1:<\/p>\n

Jalen Williams over 19.5 points + assists<\/p>\n

JDub is healthy! Despite getting hurt in Game 2 of the Round 1 series against the Phoenix Suns<\/a>, Jalen Williams said on his own YouTube channel that he is healthy and ready to play vs. San Antonio<\/a>. In fact, the prolonged absence could be viewed as precautionary. When Williams got hurt, he kept himself in the game and signaled to the bench he was OK, running up and down the court a few times, before ultimately coming out.<\/p>\n

I expect him to start and play a completely normal minutes distribution and rotation. This season he averaged 22.6 points combined with assists and 21.8 in the matchups against San Antonio. With Stephon Castle<\/a> likely face-guarding Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a>, I expect Williams to be leaned on as a playmaker for his team.<\/p>\n

\"TeddyMon, May 18, 2026 at 3:15 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Teddy Ricketson<\/p>\n

The Spurs have two players who are listed as questionable<\/a> for the series opener on Monday night.<\/p>\n

Point guard De\u2019Aaron Fox continues to deal with right ankle soreness, while center Luke Kornet has soreness in his left foot.<\/p>\n

Neither of the injuries caused the players to miss San Antonio\u2019s Game 6 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.<\/p>\n

Fox played 24 minutes in the win over Minnesota and finished with 21 points, 4 rebounds and 9 assists. He also went 3 of 3 from beyond the arc in the game.<\/p>\n

Kornet came off the bench, but still played 14 minutes. He had six points and six rebounds.<\/p>\n

The Thunder have a clean bill of health for the game.<\/p>\n

\"TeddyMon, May 18, 2026 at 3:00 PM PDT<\/p>\n

Teddy Ricketson<\/p>\n

The Thunder and the Spurs will begin a seven-game series to determine the Western Conference\u2019s representative in the 2026 NBA Finals on Monday.<\/p>\n

The series will start in Oklahoma City for the first two games, and then go to San Antonio for the second two. After that, the series will alternate locations as long as games are needed until a team wins four games.<\/p>\n

These teams met five times during the regular season thanks to an extra matchup in the 2026 NBA Cup. The Spurs won four of the five games. The lone game the Thunder won came on January 13, when Oklahoma City beat San Antonio 119-98, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scoring 34 points.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder tips…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":299013,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[6393,6399,6378,6382,6394,6391,82,84,83,1066,41611,346,102235],"class_list":["post-299012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-antonio","tag-los-angeles-lakers","tag-minnesota-timberwolves","tag-oklahoma-city","tag-oklahoma-city-thunder","tag-phoenix-suns","tag-portland-trail-blazers","tag-san-antonio","tag-san-antonio-headlines","tag-san-antonio-news","tag-san-antonio-spurs","tag-shai-gilgeous-alexander","tag-western-conference","tag-western-conference-finals"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=299012"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299012\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/299013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=299012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=299012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=299012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}