The Western Conference’s top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder will take on the eighth-seeded Phoenix Suns in the first round of the 2026 NBA playoffs. The two franchises haven’t met in the postseason since 1997, when the Thunder were the Seattle SuperSonics and Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp were still patrolling the floor.Schedule| Odds | Thunder breakdown | Suns breakdownHead-to-head| Matchup to watch | Key question| PredictionEast: 76ers-Celtics • Hawks-Knicks • Raptors-CavaliersWest: Suns-Thunder • Blazers-Spurs • Wolves-Nuggets • Rockets-LakersSeries scheduleGame 1: Sun., April 19 at Oklahoma City (3:30 p.m., ABC)Game 2: Wed., April 22 at Oklahoma City (9:30 p.m., ESPN)Game 3: Sat., April 25 at Phoenix (3:30 p.m., NBC)Game 4: Mon., April 27 at Phoenix (TBD)*Game 5: Wed., April 29 at Oklahoma City (TBD)*Game 6: Fri., May 1 at Phoenix (TBD)*Game 7: Sun., May 3 at Oklahoma City (TBD)*if necessarySeries betting odds(Via BetMGM)Oklahoma City Thunder (-3000)Phoenix Suns (+1300)What we know about the ThunderThey are the defending champions.

They didn’t quite coast to the 2025 NBA title, requiring Game 7 victories against both the Denver Nuggets and Indiana Pacers, but they were a 68-win juggernaut that never quite found its peak in the playoffs … and still won the damn thing. And now they have the playoff scars to show for it.The Thunder looked the part of a defending champion to begin the season, starting 24-1, even without Jalen Williams, who was recovering from offseason surgery to his wrist. There was talk of 70-plus wins, even a record for most wins in a regular season.Then, the upstart San Antonio Spurs offered a reminder that OKC is, in fact, mortal, defeating the Thunder three times over a two-week span, all leading into Christmas.

Over the next 35 games, the Thunder looked like any other contender, finishing 21-14.Just as it looked like the Spurs might overtake OKC for the West’s No. 1 seed, the Thunder stepped on the gas again, winning 19 of 20 games down the stretch. (They threw away the final two games of the season, once they had the top seed clinched.) They posted the NBA’s best record (64-18) and net rating (+11.1). Quite a title defense.Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was sensational all season. He is the favorite to win a second consecutive MVP award, and therefore has a case for the Best Player Alive — along with Nikola Jokić and Victor Wembanyama, his chief rivals in the West.Williams, who was limited to only 33 games, spent the season trying to round himself into All-NBA form and never quite got there.

But Chet Holmgren, the NBA’s second-best defender (behind Wembanyama) and a heck of an offensive talent, too, stepped forward in Williams’ absence, and he has a chance to make an All-NBA roster instead.Point is: There’s a lot of talent up top for OKC, and it does not end there. Alex Caruso, Lu Dort and Cason Wallace remain a pack of defensive wolves. Isaiah Hartenstein plugs every other hole in a roster.

The Thunder have talent that may not even crack a playoff rotation, including Jared McCain, who they added at the deadline just for fun. What we know about the SunsThe Suns weren’t supposed to be good. At all.

In fact, they were bad last season. Real bad. Then, they traded Kevin Durant for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and draft picks, and waived-and-stretched Bradley Beal, waving the white flag on a failed era.Devin Booker remained.

And he is still awesome. He made another All-Star team, averaging a 26-4-6 on 46/33/87 shooting splits. But the Suns weren’t supposed to have enough around him.

They were shallow last season, and they shed their stars.But Brooks brought with him a winning attitude from his days on the Memphis Grizzlies and Houston Rockets. He was the human embodiment of everything first-year head coach Jordan Ott demanded — all-out effort. And he added attitude.The Suns followed suit.

They got more than they bargained for from Collin Gillespie, Royce O’Neale, Jordan Goodwin, Oso Ighodaro and on down the line. Green missed 50 games. Brooks missed 26.

And Booker missed 18. And still the Suns kept surviving.They start with a top-10 defense, all based on effort, and figure out the offense, mostly relying on Booker, Green and Brooks to create. Gillespie does his share, too.

They got contributions from everyone, including Mark Williams and Grayson Allen. Phoenix, all season long, was a collective, a whole greater than the sum of its parts. Head-to-headThe Thunder won their regular-season series with the Suns, 3-2.Throw out the regular-season finale, a 135-103 Phoenix victory, since both teams emptied their benches in a meaningless game.

The Suns handed OKC another defeat, 108-105, in early January, when Booker made a last-second game-winner.Booker missed two games against the Thunder, both blowout losses. Green didn’t play a second against OKC this season. Don’t glean too much from their five games.But! The lineup of SGA, Williams, Dort, Wallace and Holmgren — one of many the Thunder will weaponize — be