OKC Thunder react to to clinching first seed for 2026 NBA playoffs

Apr 8, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) is defended by Los Angeles Clippers center Brook Lopez (11) in the second half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

It got a little too close for comfort at times, but the Oklahoma City Thunder have officially clinched the NBA's first seed throughout the 2026 NBA playoffs. It's the first straight year that they've sat atop the West standings.

The Thunder grabbed the first seed with a 128-110 win over the LA Clippers. In control of their own destiny, they decided to do it themselves by playing their full cast in a pseudo-playoff rotation. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 20 points and 11 assists. Chet Holmgren exploded for 30 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks.

Considering the San Antonio Spurs morphed into a winning machine, the Thunder needed until the final few days of the regular season to clinch the first seed. Things got a little too close there. OKC was habitually just around two games up on them for most of the post-All-Star break schedule.

Now that the Thunder have clinched the first seed, here's what they said about crossing off the important goal:

Mark Daigneault

"It's a great accomplishment. No two seasons are the same. This season was a lot of different experiences. We obviously started really hot, and then dealt with a lot of missed games, especially in the middle of the season. It felt like two months we were in during that. When you win the championship, that kinda hangs over you as a team the next year. Meaning everybody, including ourselves, you judge yourself against that. It's incredibly hard to be present in the next regular season. I learned so much from this team because of their ability to come in every day and just embrace the day."

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

"It feels better for sure. Not only because we had to weather it a little bit more, but just like repeating something and doing it again is always a little bit harder. It's a little more challenging. The league gets better, players get better. For us to still have the best overall record through that and the ups and downs speaks volumes to the team. Speaks volumes to the guys in the summertime, getting better individually; coaching staff, getting better individually. We always say at the beginning of the season that no matter what happens, we have to earn what we get and make it to the playoffs in our seed. We earned the first overall seed.”

Chet Holmgren

"I'd say adversity is never unexpected. It pops up in different ways and injuries are one of the ways we've seen it this year and you just can't turn them into excuses. I thought we did a good job just fighting through everything that we saw this year. It's paid off."

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: OKC Thunder react to to clinching first seed for 2026 NBA playoffs