Thunder one win from NBA Finals after 127-114 Game 5 rout of Spurs

The Oklahoma City Thunder are just one win away from making their second straight NBA Finals appearance. The Western Conference Finals returned to Oklahoma City on Tuesday night, and the league’s defending champions pulled away in the second half to win Game 5, 127-114.

Two-time NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 32 points and nine assists on Tuesday night.

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Stephon Castle led the Spurs with 24 points and 5 rebounds, while Victor Wembanyama finished the game with 20 points, the lowest score of the series.

Heading into Tuesday, the Spurs appeared to be following a relatively simple formula for success in the Western Conference Finals: They win when Wembanyama is the best player on the floor. Without him, they lost.

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama watches the Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Wembanyama, who scored 41 and 33 points in Spurs’ two wins at the beginning of the series, could never quite find his rhythm in Game 5. He was 4-of-15 from the field and missed all five of his three-point attempts.

Just two minutes into the third quarter, he gave an impassioned speech to his teammates during a timeout after the Thunder had blown an 18-point lead. And it worked, up to a point. Oklahoma City scored again to increase the lead to 20, but the Spurs closed the gap eight minutes into the third quarter.

On the other hand, the New York Knicks will have to wait until at least Thursday to find out which team will emerge from the Western Conference.

Oklahoma City Thunder’s Jared McCain celebrates during the fourth quarter of Game Five of the NBA Western Conference Finals against the San Antonio Spurs at Paycom Center on May 26, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Before the start of Game 5 of the Spurs-Thunder series, San Antonio coach Mitch Johnson was told that Knicks fans in Manhattan were chanting “We want Wemby! We want Wemby!” They were asked to shout:

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“I know New York is on fire. They won and the city is obviously enjoying it and they had a great playoff run,” Johnson said. “But unfortunately, I’m pretty fixated on what’s happening right in front of us.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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