Thunder-Spurs Preview: Oklahoma City seeks revenge against San Antonio after NBA Cup defeat
SAN ANTONIO – Two of the Western Conference’s top teams met Tuesday night when the Oklahoma City Thunder visited the San Antonio Spurs.
Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at Frost Bank Center.
Oklahoma City comes in at 26-3, best in the NBA, while San Antonio sits second in the West at 21-7 and carries a three-game winning streak into the matchup.
The Thunder are 22-3 against Western Conference opponents and lead the conference defensively, allowing only 106.2 points per game while holding opponents to 42.6 percent shooting. Oklahoma City is also averaging 13.9 3-pointers made per game, one more per game than the Spurs typically allow.
San Antonio is 12-6 against the West and ranks sixth in the NBA scoring at 120.1 points per game while shooting 48.3 percent from the field. That scoring average is nearly 14 points higher than what Oklahoma City allows.
This is the second meeting between the teams this season. The Spurs edged the Thunder 111-109 on Dec. 14 in Las Vegas, when Devin Vassell scored 23 points for San Antonio, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led Oklahoma City with 29.
Gilgeous-Alexander enters Tuesday averaging 32.5 points per game with 4.9 rebounds. The Thunder are 8-2 over their last 10 games, averaging 122.8 points while shooting just over 50 percent from the field.
San Antonio has also gone 8-2 over its last 10, averaging 121.6 points per game. Victor Wembanyama is listed as day-to-day with a calf issue. He is averaging 24.4 points while shooting 51.3 percent. De’Aaron Fox has averaged five 3-pointers per game over his last 10 outings.
Oklahoma City will have Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso available after they missed time recently. Several Thunder players remained out, including Aaron Wiggins, Jaylin Williams, Ajay Mitchell and Ousmane Dieng.
Mitchell played well last night against the Grizzlies but left late in the game because of a concussion.
Where, When & How to Watch
Matchup: San Antonio Spurs (21-7) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (26-3)
Date: Tuesday December 23, 2025
Time: 7:30 p.m. CT
Location: San Antonio
Watch: FanDuel Sports
The Spurs take on the Thunder in San Antonio with a rematch on Christmas Day in OKC scheduled
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According to the official schedule that was released at the beginning of the season, tonight should have been the first meeting between the Spurs and the Thunder, but instead, they met on December 13 in the NBA Cup Western Conference finals, with the Spurs scoring an upset victory 111-109. The Silver and Black were led by Victor Wemanyama, who came off the bench and played limited minutes after missing almost a month with a left calf strain. He is on the injury report again tonight, listed as questionable with the same issue, which continues to be something to watch for the Silver and Black. Victor should come off the bench once again tonight, and it remains to be seen what his minutes restriction is going to be, if it’s like the last couple of games, he could play something between 20 and 24 minutes, with the Spurs limiting him enough so that he can hopefully be available for the rematch on Christmas Day in Oklahoma City.
The Spurs are on a 6 game win streak1,
but with a pair of games coming up against the league-leading OKC squad, it might be difficult to stretch the string of consecutive victories to 7 or 8, but the Spurs have shown that they can’t be counted out against any team in the league, and they have a great chance of winning one or both of these games, although I expect OKC to be favored in both. The Spurs have been hitting their stride recently, and these next two games should give Spurs fans a chance to see if they’re truly deserving of the lofty second-place standing in the Western Conference. The Spurs can’t just be the Wemby show tonight if they want to win, they are also going to need great games from Spurs stalwarts like Stephon Castle, De’Aaron Fox, Devin Vassell, and Luke Kornet. Hopefully, Harrison Barnes is back to being Mr. 100%, and if all of them can show up, and the bench with Keldon Johnson can step up as well, it could be another big win. If they can win tonight, they’ll remain in second place in the west, but they could slip to third with a loss, unless the Nuggets also lose to Cooper Flagg and the Mavericks.
As officially counted by the NBA. If you look at the Schedule and Results page on basketball–reference.com, you’ll notice that there were no games played between the victory over the Thunder on the 13th, and the first Wizards win on the 18th, which should settle the debate once and for all.
The Oklahoma CityThunder will travel on the road to face the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday. It’s the second matchup of the season between the squads. Last time, OKC was on the wrong side of an upset loss in the 2025 NBA Cup semifinals on December. 13.
The Thunder (26-3) are on the second night of a home-and-road back-to-back. They pulled away late in a 119-103 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 31 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists to lead the short-handed roster.
Meanwhile, the Spurs (21-7) have won three in a row. They collected a 124-113 win over the Washington Wizards on Sunday. De’Aaron Fox went off for 27 points and six assists. Victor Wembanyama continues to come off the bench.
For live updates of the Thunder’s game against the Spurs, please regularly check back to this post:
End 1Q: Thunder 31, Spurs 29
The defense needs to be better. That’s their bread and butter. Can’t give up 22 points inside the paint. Holmgren had a couple of baskets scored on him in a textbook contest.
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Spurs are playing with more energy to start. Meanwhile, Gilgeous-Alexander already has five points. He grabbed his finger, though, for a few possessions. Something to keep an eye on.
Starting lineups
The Thunder will start Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. The Spurs will start De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, Harrison Barnes and Luke Kornet.
What channel is Thunder vs. Spurs game on today? Time, TV schedule
TV Channel: FanDuel Sports Network Oklahoma
Start time: 7:30 p.m. CT
Thunder vs. Spurs on livestream
Thunder vs. Spurs injury updates
Thunder: Ajay Mitchell (concussion protocol) is out. Aaron Wiggins (adductor strain) is questionable. Jaylin Williams (heel bursitis) is out. Ousmane Dieng (calf strain) was out. Nikola Topic (testicular surgery) is out. Thomas Sorber (torn ACL) is out.
Spurs: Victor Wembanyama (calf injury management) is questionable. Harrison Ingram (G League two-way) is out. David Jones Garcia (G League Two-Way) is out. Stanley Umude (G League two-way) is out.
Thunder 2025-26 schedule
Thursday, Dec. 25 vs. Spurs
Sunday, Dec. 28 vs. Sixers
Monday, Dec. 29 vs. Hawks
Player grades: Thunder pull away late in 119-103 win over Grizzlies
Photos: Best images from the Thunder’s 119-103 win over the Grizzlies
How to watch Grizzlies vs. Thunder today: Time, TV channel
Prediction and betting odds for Grizzlies vs. Thunder
Full injury report for Monday’s Grizzlies vs. Thunder matchup
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SAN ANTONIO – Two of the Western Conference’s top teams met Tuesday night when the Oklahoma City Thunder visited the San Antonio Spurs.
Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at Frost Bank Center.
Oklahoma City comes in at 26-3, best in the NBA, while San Antonio sits second in the West at 21-7 and carries a three-game winning streak into the matchup.
TheThunder are 22-3 against Western Conference opponents and lead the conference defensively, allowing only 106.2 points per game while holding opponents to 42.6 percent shooting. Oklahoma City is also averaging 13.9 3-pointers made per game, one more per game than the Spurs typically allow.
San Antonio is 12-6 against the West and ranks sixth in the NBA scoring at 120.1 points per game while shooting 48.3 percent from the field. That scoring average is nearly 14 points higher than what Oklahoma City allows.
This is the second meeting between the teams this season. The Spurs edged the Thunder 111-109 on Dec. 14 in Las Vegas, when Devin Vassell scored 23 points for San Antonio, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led Oklahoma City with 29.
Gilgeous-Alexander enters Tuesday averaging 32.5 points per game with 4.9 rebounds. The Thunder are 8-2 over their last 10 games, averaging 122.8 points while shooting just over 50 percent from the field.
San Antonio has also gone 8-2 over its last 10, averaging 121.6 points per game. Victor Wembanyama is listed as day-to-day with a calf issue. He is averaging 24.4 points while shooting 51.3 percent. De’Aaron Fox has averaged five 3-pointers per game over his last 10 outings.
Oklahoma City will have Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso available after they missed time recently. Several Thunder players remained out, including Aaron Wiggins, Jaylin Williams, Ajay Mitchell and Ousmane Dieng.
Mitchell played well last night against the Grizzlies but left late in the game because of a concussion.
Where, When & How to Watch
Matchup: San Antonio Spurs (21-7) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (26-3)
Date: Tuesday December 23, 2025
Time: 7:30 p.m. CT
Location: San Antonio
Watch: FanDuel Sports
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