2026 NBA Playoffs

Live Updates: 2026 NBA Playoffs, Western Conference Finals | The Spurs-Thunder rivalry reignites

Tap in for the best of Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals with the NBA.com live blog.

Ben Lambert, for NBA.com

Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs are challenging the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on NBC and Peacock.

Enjoy the best of the 2026 NBA Playoffs, presented by Google, with the NBA.com live blog, featuring all of the meaningful moments, performances, observations, news and highlights from Monday’s action.

What we know about Monday’s game:

  • The Spurs won the season series over the Thunder 3-1, adding an additional win in the Emirates NBA Cup semifinal.
  • San Antonio was the only team with a winning record versus Oklahoma City this season.
  • This is the first time two teams with 62 wins or more have played in the NBA Playoffs since the 1998 NBA Finals.
  • The team that wins Game 1 of the Conference Finals has gone on to win the series 78.2% of the time in NBA history.

MAY 18, 2026 / 10:01 ET

Thunder take the lead

58-57 Oklahoma City with 7:33 to go in the third quarter.

Chet Holmgren, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort have knocked down 3-pointers so far in the period, as the defending champs bring the energy in front of their home fans at the Paycom Center.

MAY 18, 2026 / 9:52 ET

Thunder go small

Cason Wallace is starting the third quarter for the Thunder in place of Isaiah Hartenstein, as the Thunder shift to match the Spurs’ speed, as they did in the 2025 NBA Finals against the Pacers.

MAY 18, 2026 / 9:37 ET

Spurs up 51-44 at the half

Victor Wembanyama (14 pts, 10 reb) is out of the gates quickly, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (4 pts) was limited to his fewest points in a Playoff half since 2020.

The Spurs held the Thunder to 37.2% shooting in the first half, although they’re only shooting 41.9% themselves.

That’s the lowest-scoring half for the Thunder in this postseason, as well as their lowest shooting percentage.

“(Defense is) our calling card. That’s what gets our engine running. I think when we get out and run, we’re the best team in the world,” said Stephon Castle (11 pts). “I think if we took care of the ball, we’d have an even bigger lead right now, so we’re going to try to clean that up in the second half.”

SGA is a team-low -15 at the break, while Wembanyama is a game-high +15.

MAY 18, 2026 / 9:28 ET

OKC out and running

The Thunder have a 12-0 lead in fast break points so far, as they cut the Spurs’ lead to 44-41 with 3:40 to go in the first half.

Jared McCain just went coast-to-coast, attacking Luke Kornet backpedaling on the break. Kornet’s foot speed and quickness could be tested in this series against an athletic Thunder squad.

MAY 18, 2026 / 9:22 ET

Carter Bryant all over the place

Watch the Spurs rookie’s defense on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The athletic 6’6″ wing, who was a contestant in the AT&T Slam Dunk Contest, is picking up full court and harassing the newly-crowned Kia MVP, including forcing a turnover a moment ago.

MAY 18, 2026 / 9:19 ET

Spurs take a lead

40-32 with 7:20 to go in the half.

Victor Wembanyama (10 pts, 10 reb) just scored back-to-back buckets, including a remarkable no-leap dunk, with a 3-pointer from Alex Caruso (13 pts) in-between.

MAY 18, 2026 / 9:06 ET

Tied at 27 after one

We’ve seen four lead changes and three ties so far in this contest, as Oklahoma City rallies following a strong start by San Antonio.

The Thunder have received 15 points from their bench, led by Alex Caruso (10 pts), who leads them in scoring, along with Jalen Williams (10 pts). Stephon Castle (11 pts) is the top man for the Spurs.

San Antonio is shooting just 38.1% from the field and has committed five turnovers, but is 8-of-9 from the free throw stripe to even it out.

Ajay Mitchell leads the game at +6 — he sparked the Thunder offense after coming in off the bench.

MAY 18, 2026 / 9:02 ET

Thunder tie it up as J-Dub gets loose

25-all as the first quarter winds down.

Jalen Williams (8 pts) has woken up in his return game, getting to the rim repeatedly with Victor Wembanyama out of the game.

MAY 18, 2026 / 8:51 ET

Caruso immediately responds

Alex Caruso puts in back-to-back layups for the Thunder, cutting the lead to 12-7 with 6:48 to go in the first.

The Thunder were settling themselves down in the huddle after the Spurs quick run to start the game — Caruso, the oldest player on the team, immediately settles them down.

MAY 18, 2026 / 8:48 ET

Spurs out to 12-3 lead

This is tied for the largest deficit the Thunder have faced in the postseason — the Suns also had a nine-point lead in Game 3 of their first round series.

Stephon Castle hit a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer to open the game, which is always crucial for the Spurs, and Julian Champagnie’s added one as well.

MAY 18, 2026 / 8:45 ET

A star-studded matchup tips off

MAY 18, 2026 / 8:30 ET

Thunder have been dominant at home

Since 2024-25, the Thunder are 70-14 at home (.833 winning percentage) — the best in the NBA.

The Cavaliers are second at 61-21 (.744).

MAY 18, 2026 / 7:50 ET

De’Aaron Fox out

With Fox missing tonight’s contest, rookie Dylan Harper (9.0 ppg vs. OKC) this season steps into the starting lineup.

Harper has been a more aggressive slasher than Fox in recent games — few guards can match his skills when getting downhill. The stage will be the main question for the young Spurs guard.

Tyler Herro holds the rookie record for points in a Conference Finals game with 37, which he put up against the Celtics in Game 4 of the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals.

Earl Tatum (32 points) holds the record for the Western Conference Finals, which he put up in Game 1 of the 1977 Western Conference Finals for the Los Angeles Lakers.

MAY 18, 2026 / 6:45 ET

Starting Lineups: Spurs-Thunder, Game 1

Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama will renew their rivalry tonight as the Spurs face the Thunder on NBC and Peacock.

San Antonio:

  • PG De’Aaron Fox
    • Fox could be crucial this series. Can he win one-on-one matchups with Luguentz Dort, Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace? Can his quickness make it difficult for OKC to play Ajay Mitchell? As an established vet, Fox steps into a critical role for a young San Antonio team in this series.
  • SG Stephon Castle
    • Castle logged the second-most minutes (21:13) guarding Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of any player this season, holding him to 24 points on 6-of-19 (31%) shooting, with SGA going 11-for-13 from the line.
  • SF Devin Vassell
    • Vassell is making 1.9 3PM on 5.9 3PA (32.9%) in this Playoff run — below his career average of 2.1 makes on 5.7 attempts (37.2%).
  • PF Julian Champagnie
    • Can Champagnie prove his worth against a deep Thunder squad? He’ll draw time on Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, which could complicate life for the St. John’s product. Harrison Barnes, Keldon Johnson and Carter Bryant could also see time at power forward for the Spurs in this series, with the Playoff-tested Kelly Olynyk available in case of emergency.
  • C Victor Wembanyama
    • Wembanyama was held to 18.4 ppg against the Thunder this season — his third-lowest mark against any team — despite shooting 62.5% from 3-point range.

Oklahoma City:

  • PG Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
    • The reigning Kia MVP has the chance to make a real statement in this series. He’s the preeminent player in the game, facing one of his chief rivals in Wembanyama, with a chance to become the third player to win MVP and Finals MVP in the same season on two occasions, joining Michael Jordan, who did it four times, and LeBron James. Heady company.
  • SG Luguentz Dort
    • Dort held De’Aaron Fox to 13 points on 4-of-13 shooting over 15:57 of game action this season.
  • SF Jalen Williams
    • J-Dub returns with the chance to take home another ring. His 40-point performance in last year’s NBA Finals is a career highlight. Will he demonstrate a taste for the big stage?
  • PF Chet Holmgren
    • Holmgren’s rivalry with Wembanyama dates back to their teenage years. If he can outplay The Alien in even a single game, it could swing the series for Oklahoma City. He’s been confident in this Playoff run so far, and even dominant at times against the Lakers.
  • C Isaiah Hartenstein
    • I-Hart missed two of the Thunder’s games against the Spurs this season, and spent most of his time facing Luke Kornet as part of the second unit. Will OKC go small again? If so, they have a bevy of options, including Jaylin Williams (13.7 pts, 8.3 reb vs. the Spurs this season) and the sharpshooting Jared McCain.

MAY 18, 2026 / 6:00 ET

Monday’s injury report

De’Aaron Fox and Luke Kornet are questionable for the Spurs. Thomas Sorber is out for the Thunder.

MAY 18, 2026 / 5:30 ET

Tap in for the Spurs-Thunder

The clip of Hakeem Olajuwon shaking David Robinson seems fitting.

In 1995, Robinson won Most Valuable Player, receiving 73 first-place votes, while Olajuwon, who had won it the year prior while Robinson finished second, got only one.

Hakeem then averaged 35.3 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 4.2 blocks per game in the Rockets 4-2 series victory over the Rockets, outdueling The Admiral, who averaged 23.8 points, 11.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.1 blocks.

Victor Wembanyama and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander don’t play the same position. But SGA won the 2025-26 Kia MVP over Wembanyama and Nikola Jokić, his fellow finalists. Will that motivate The Alien to do something otherworldly in this series?

We’ll soon find out.

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