OKLAHOMA CITY — Blowouts have not been uncommon in these N.B.A. playoffs, but when a record-setting 73-victory team loses in the way the Golden State Warriors did Sunday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena, it must be asked if the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 133-105 trouncing of the defending champions might psychologically be worth more than one game.
At the very least, the Warriors now know how the San Antonio Spurs felt by the conclusion of their second-round series, sensing that a transformative fulfillment of potential at the season’s most propitious stage has seized hold of the Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook-led Thunder.