The 2024-25 NBA regular season is less than a week away from its completion. For nearly the entirety of the season, the same team has been atop their respective conferences. In the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers have held that top spot. Out in the Western Conference, the Oklahoma City Thunder have clinched the top seed more than two weeks ago. Cleveland has winning streaks of 16, 15, and 12 this year. OKC has 11 and 10-game winning streaks. With all the winning that these two squads have done, it has been extremely rare that both the Cavaliers and Thunder lose on the same day. Both did so on Sunday though.
Cavaliers and Thunder Lose On Same Day For Just Second Time
Both OKC and Cleveland Suffer Losses
November 19, 2024. As of Sunday, April 6, that date was 138 days ago. The significance of that date? It was the last time we had seen both Cleveland and Oklahoma City lose on the same day. That was until Sunday.
It started with a surprising blowout victory by the Los Angeles Lakers over OKC by the score of 126-99. The 27-point loss was easily the Thunder’s largest margin of defeat, with the previous high being 15. It was a stunning performance by Oklahoma City as the Lakers dropped 78 points in the first half and shot 22-40 from beyond the arc for the game.
About 2.5 hours later, the Cavaliers saw their game end as well. Just like the Thunder, Cleveland came out on the short end of their contest. The Sacramento Kings were victorious, winning by a 120-113 margin. Sacramento saw DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Domantas Sabonis combine for 92 points on 36-54 shooting from the field.
It ended up marking just the second time this season that both conference leaders lost on the same day. Sunday also was the first time that both teams lost at home on the same day. In case you are wondering, no, neither team had a starter out of action.
Still Atop Their Conference Standings
Sunday’s losing effort dropped Oklahoma City’s record to a still-incredible 64-14. They still are 12.5 games up on the rest of the Western Confernce. Even with their blowout loss on Sunday, they still are on pace for the best scoring differential in league history. They are outscoring opponents by 12.53 points per contest. At least one more win would secure the Thunder their best record in franchise history (including their time as the Seattle SuperSonics).
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers are now 62-16, two games back of the Thunder for best record in the NBA. While they entered Sunday’s game winners of three straight, they are just 6-6 in their last 12 games. Cleveland hasn’t quite clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference, but they have a magic number of one to do so (one win or one Boston Celtics loss). They now need to win their final four outings to tie their best record in team history (66-16 in 2008-09).
The Thunder will have an opportunity to avenge their loss to the Lakers on Tuesday when they meet them again at home. The Cavaliers next play Tuesday at home against the Chicago Bulls. Will it be the third time this season both conference leaders lose, or will they get back on track?
Photo credit: © Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
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