Spurs spent entire season teaching Thunder a strict lesson they couldn't grasp

Now that the Western Conference Finals have come to an end, we can take a holistic view of the 12-game series between the Spurs and Thunder that spanned the entirety of the season. That's a large sample size. San Antonio won eight of those meetings, and there was a theme of dominance, proving they've already caught up to OKC. Experience be damned—there's too much talent on this side.

We heard all season about how deep Oklahoma City's roster was, but you can only have five players on the floor at one time. No matter who Mark Daigneault rotated in and out of the game, Mitch Johnson usually had the better group on the floor. It starts with the monster in the middle, but the Spurs' rotation is nothing to sneeze at either, and they proved that in the biggest moment.

What good is OKC's depth if they get swallowed whole by Spurs' defense?

Coach Johnson leaned on his best guys in a pivotal game that would decide their season, a tried-and-true method that stretches back a long time. Depth is cool and everything, but when a berth to the NBA Finals is on the line, you should go with your best group. San Antonio has a deep bench, too, but even Keldon Johnson saw reduced time last night, only playing 16 minutes as great as he was.

In all fairness to OKC, they weren't close to 100%. Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell missed the last few games of this series, minus the sparing minutes Williams tried to give his team in Game 6. But that's one of the many reasons why going back-to-back is difficult. Staying healthy for consecutive runs is never guaranteed, and the Spurs had injuries of their own to deal with.

Ahead of Game 4, Coach Daigneault told reporters that he has the flexibility to either give more minutes to key guys or spread playing time out to guys all the way at the end of their bench. That was supposed to be a strength of their roster. So, there can be no excuses now when those second- and third-string guys couldn't get the job done, and Mark said as much after the game.

The truth of the matter is, they had the same problem in the playoffs that they had during the regular season. What the hell do you do with this version of Victor Wembanyama? They couldn't figure it out with any consistency. Sometimes, what happened during those 82 games matters a little more than some would give it credit for.

As opponents scramble to take space away from him on offense and avoid him like the plague when he's on defense, his very talented teammates take advantage of the chaos. In a way, the Spurs' identity mirrors the best version of Wembanyama's game: inside out.

The Alien is at the center of everything that makes San Antonio special, but sleep on his teammates for a second, and they'll wear you out. The Silver and Black beat OKC by an average margin of nearly 14 points per game this season. That's a reality the Thunder are going to struggle with for the entirety of the offseason.

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