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I’ve seen enough: Entrust the Spurs the access to Santa Claus’ workshop. Place Stephon Castle in control of toy assembly. Let De’Aaron Fox deliver packages into rooftops, from any range he’d like. Vassell can personalize the Christmas cookies. Harrison Barnes has the legion of elves managed. And, of course, the sleigh's transport must promptly be modified for a more statuesque, thinner pilot so that the colossal Wemby can navigate it comfortably.

The electrifying San Antonio squad have beaten the OKC on three occasions in two weeks, and in doing so have reinvigorated this NBA season. I now have increased confidence in the Spurs’ ability to provide joy to the masses than any Christmas stories of old.

A Dire Start

It looked dire for a time. The Thunder might have won the title in June, but commenced this campaign in increasingly ominous form. They notched 24 victories in their initial 25 contests (the lone loss was a unlikely 20-point comeback). In most of them of those games, Jalen Williams, their next best player, was on the bench healing from wrist surgery. Gilgeous-Alexander, their best player, hardly ever had to play in crunch time. The Thunder beat the Kings by 31. The Los Angeles Lakers, who some thought to be a possible rival, fell by 29; their offensive genius Luka Doncic appeared as if he was facing ten men. The Suns' gallant first earned them a close loss, by just four points. When they faced off again 12 days later, the Thunder triumphed by 49. This game signaled the definitive end and ushered in the cold season 10 days early. Oklahoma City looked capable of demolishing every team in its path, even the 2016 Golden State Warriors’ fabled regular season record of 73-9.

The Nature of Their Game

The Thunder do not employ a particularly attractive style of basketball. They adeptly take advantage of the referees’ quandary over which infractions to call (a constant whistle breaks the flow of the game, an absent one lets players get away with obvious violations), often causing Gilgeous-Alexander taking foul shots after whistles that would be better swallowed, while personified pest Alex Caruso seems to have total license to do anything he likes on the defensive end. Some profess to admire, SGA twisting his body to elicit minor touches from defenders; I can only imagine those same people also like being struck hard in a sensitive area. That’s not to mention man-mountain Dort flying off his feet and into opponents after plenty of questionably light touches. This tactics allows critics to cling to the notion that in a world with flawless officiating, the Thunder would be a mediocre team. True basketball heads know it’s far more irritating than essential to the Thunder’s success, but the overall irritation is sufficient to nudge some fans who might otherwise be indifferent into supporting Oklahoma City’s demise.

Dominance can be coldly thrilling to watch, but a historically great performance tends to generate diminished wonder the more times it happens again. How many times does anyone really want to watch one team beat another by 35? In the end you remember that the drama is the point. The Thunder were sapping the season of intrigue, running up leads on other teams in the standings as well as on the floor.

The San Antonio Response

Through the first half of the first quarter of the initial Spurs-Thunder game this season, San Antonio trailed by 16 and appeared destined to go the same way as every other team. Instead, they have unleashed chaos on the Thunder ever since.

Against the Spurs, the Thunder look beatable. Each member of their core deserves considerable credit for that, but this is Wembanyama's team, and the Thunder know it. “There’s this player on their team that’s seven-foot-five and occupies a lot of area on the court,” Jalen Williams said, with some exasperation, when asked what made the Spurs such a difficult opponent. The Thunder’s professional beanpole, 7ft 1in Chet Holmgren, is the biggest player on the floor in most games, at liberty to secure boards and swat down opposing shots. Next to Wembanyama, he’s smaller, unpolished, and even timid. Wembanyama’s disdain for Holmgren is apparent in how he celebrates each time Chet misses a free throw, as though he’s scored a major victory; the way he fouls him with a bit of extra venom; the way he told reporters he does not view Holmgren a competitor. (There is indeed no debate over which player is better.) At this rate Holmgren must expect Wemby to jump out from the cupboard, taunting, when he stretches for a treat.

Holiday Domination

The Spurs led by Wembanyama made their most definitive statement yet on Christmas, thumping the Thunder by 15 on their home floor. San Antonio withstood the customary early punch well yet again, bouncing back to score 41 points on the league’s best defense in the first quarter. De'Aaron Fox effortlessly found the tiny holes in that defense to the tune of 29 points. The Spurs even held Gilgeous-Alexander to a year-low 22. He tried to make up for it by whipping passes to open teammates behind the arc, but they disappointed by bricking almost every single attempt.

A Thunder supporter would say that a sufficient number of those three-pointers will go in in a rematch to produce a victory or a tighter loss, but I found the failed attempts indicative of a flaw. Off the strength of his silky-smooth stepback jumper, SGA is the most consistent scoring force in the league. He is difficult to guard and extremely difficult to stop. But even he can’t shoulder an offense entirely on his own. The Spurs put Gilgeous-Alexander under such intense scrutiny that he had to distribute more than usual, and his role players struggled under the greater burden. Caruso and Dort are good for the sporadic three-pointer, but relying on them to make the three-ball is the least desirable situation the Thunder want to be.

The New Landscape

The Spurs’ surge couldn’t have come at a better time. Not only have they forcefully proven themselves as title contenders – but they’ve let fans to see the Thunder in {higher definition|sharper focus|