Oklahoma City destroyed Minnesota by 30 points in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday night to secure a spot in the NBA Finals. It was much more lopsided than the final score suggests and on balance the series wasn't very competitive, save for a bizarre Game 3. Minnesota's Mike Conley and Anthony Edwards were fairly open and honest about the differences between the two games postgame.
"Their movement, their body language their connectivity," Conley told reporters. "Their IQ, the things that they were doing, the adjustments they were making were just a level above us."
Edwards interjected with a succinct and illustrative summation of an Oklahoma City team that is now 80-18 on the season.
"One string, 15 puppets on one string," he said.
Mike Conley: "Their movement, their body movement, their connectivity in a sense that... their IQ, the things that they were doing, the adjustments they were making were just a level above us"
— CJ Fogler 🫡 (@cjzero) May 29, 2025
Anthony Edwards: "one string... 15 puppets on one string" pic.twitter.com/muTe3ahxQy
That's a pretty good way of putting it. The Thunder play so together and as one more than almost any other team in recent history. They are more than the sum of their parts and are just so cohesive. Throw in a home atmosphere where all the fans are dressed the same and intensely into every possession and it's a tall task to compete with their puppet show.
Indiana and New York are playing for that opportunity right now and whomever wins will have to figure out some way to disrupt the Thunder's synchronicity.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Anthony Edwards Had Very Unique Compliment for Thunder After Elimination.
