On February 24, the Thunder once again faced the Golden State Warriors on the road.
They were old rivals. Without any targeted adjustments to their strategies, it would come down to whose players were in better form.
It looked like it would be a thrilling showdown that went down to the final minute, but an unexpected spark came off the bench in the second quarter. Wade was on fire tonight. Leading the bench lineup, he put together a 9–0 run against the Warriors in just four minutes, quickly opening up a lead.
Kerr hurriedly put Durant in to steady the game and try to claw back from the deficit.
Unfortunately, it was too late.
The Thunder made substitutions of their own, bringing Chen Xi back in right away. Once they matched the Warriors' firepower, they managed to hold off their comeback.
Then they locked down on defense in the Second Half, stubbornly keeping the gap from closing.
In the end, they secured another win on Golden State's home court, beating the Warriors 124–117 and firmly holding them in third place in the Western Conference.
In their final two games of February, they went on to face the Orlando Magic and the Mavericks, winning both with ease. They also got off to a strong start in their first game of March, comfortably beating the Suns.
On March 3, the Thunder faced the Trail Blazers on the road.
This year's Trail Blazers were a whole different team. They had an impressive record and had climbed as high as fourth in the Western Conference, staying ahead of the Spurs for a while. Although Lillard's slump later saw the Spurs overtake them again, their record was still far better than in previous years.
Now, in the second week after the All-Star Game, Lillard was