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The Thunder head into the playoffs against the Trail Blazers as a 6th seed, but one that experienced a lot of coulda-shoulda moments down the stretch. Only a late season swoon knocked OKC out of the upper ranks of the West, and meanwhile the Blazers, despite losing big man Jusuf Nurkic, continued to win, and grabbed the spot the Thunder had held onto for so long.
Game one is typically a feeling out kind of experience, as each team will look to establish successful patterns while measuring how the other team is going to attack.