National Basketball Association

OKC Thunder looking to continue perfect start against LA Lakers

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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With two matchups against the Los Angeles Clippers and one against the Golden State Warriors within the next two weeks, tomorrow’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers is looking more and more like a must-win for the Thunder.

It’s been a steady, progressive start to the season for the Oklahoma City Thunder. The side have won, albeit narrowly, both games so far.

However, in terms of the strength of their opposition, OKC shouldn’t have been tested yet. Last season the Phoenix Suns and the Philadephia 76ers mustered a collective 33 wins, around 60 percent of the Thunder achieved themselves.

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The Thunder have won their games this season by an average 4.5 points. This is something Billy Donovan and co. will be hoping to improve upon against the Los Angeles Lakers, who go into the game off the back of a loss against the Utah Jazz.

Oct 28, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Jazz guard George Hill (3) loses his footing against Los Angeles Lakers forward Nick Young (0) in the fourth quarter at Vivint Smart Home Arena. The Utah Jazz defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 96-89. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

Lou Williams and Nick Young were the 16-time NBA Champions’ best performers last night, making them the men to watch on Sunday.

The last matchup between the two sides was back in April. That game was also at the Chesapeake Arena, with the Thunder running away as 79-112 winners.

In fact, OKC completed a four-game sweep on the gold-and-purple franchise last year, scoring an average 116.8 points per game.

If the Thunder do manage to defeat the Lakers tomorrow, it’ll be nine wins against the side in a row. The last time the Lakers beat OKC was in March of 2014, in a 114-110 win at the Staples Center.

But the Lakers did win their first game of this season, defeating the Houston Rockets 120-114, something which will give the side confidence as the travel to the midwest.

51 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists.

Fans of the Oklahoma City Thunder will be hoping that Russell Westbrook keeps his hot-streak going right through the weekend, as he put up monster numbers against the Suns.

Russ’ haul of a 50+ point triple-double has only been replicated once, by the NBA’s all-time leading points scorer – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

The point guard has led his side in points, rebounds, and assists so far this season, meaning a lot of responsibility will fall on his shoulders.

Both Steven Adams and Domantas Sabonis have enjoyed steady starts to the season on the front-court too.

Despite sinking 21 points last night, Victor Oladipo will look to find his feet against the Lakers too. The guard’s chemistry with Russ is still a work in progress, something that’ll need to be sorted by the time the franchise face some of the conference’s best talent.

Vic was in good form during his last meeting against the Lakers in March. His Orlando Magic side lost the game 107-98, but the guard managed to shot an impressive 26 points, on top of four rebounds and a duo of assists.