Victor Wembanyama leads the way for Spurs as they keep their season alive on Thursday and force Game 7.
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Game 7s in NBA history have a lore all their own and that has been the case in the 2026 NBA Playoffs as well.
Four series in the 2026 playoffs have gone to Game 7 and a fifth awaits as the San Antonio Spurs will take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals on Saturday (8 p.m. ET, NBC & Peacock). With that in mind, here are some stats and facts to know about Game 7.
About this Game 7:
No. 160: Saturday’s game will mark the 160th Game 7 in NBA history.
Looking back: It will be the 39th Game 7 in the Conference/Division Finals round.
This round switched from the Division Finals to the Conference Finals during the 1970-71 season.
Since that switch, there have been 10 Western Conference Finals Game 7s.
The last time …: This is the first Game 7 in the West Finals since 2018. The Warriors won that game, 101-92, in Houston.
Party like its 2016: The 2026 playoffs have had five Game 7s (including this one), the most in a single postseason. It’s the fourth time that’s happened (it previously occurred in 1993-94, 2013-14 and ’15-16)and is the first time in 10 years the NBA playoffs have had five Game 7s.
Homecourt advantage?: Home teams historically have the advantage in Game 7s (117-42 overall), but road teams are 2-2 in the 2026 Game 7s as the Philadelphia 76ers and Cleveland Cavaliers each won Game 7s on the road. (Philly’s was in the first round and Cleveland’s was in the East semis.)
Hardware showdown: This is the second time in NBA history that the season’s Kia MVP (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander) and the Kia Defensive Player of the Year (Victor Wembanyama) will square off in a Game 7.
The other instance was in 2024 when Kia MVP Nikola Jokić of Denver faced that season’s DPOY, Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert, in Game 7 of the West semis. Each had earned their respective awards roughly a week before Game 7 and Gobert and the Wolves won, 98-90.
League parity: Should San Antonio win Game 7, it would ensure the NBA has eight different champions in eight straight seasons while also pitting the Spurs against the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals.
More parity: Should San Antonio advance, they will also be the seventh different Western Conference team to make the NBA Finals in seven seasons. The previous six? The Los Angeles Lakers (2020), Phoenix Suns (2021), Golden State Warriors (2022), Denver Nuggets (2023), Dallas Mavericks (2024) and Oklahoma City Thunder (2025).
Thunder in Game 7s
All-time: The franchise is 8-5 all-time in Game 7s, including 8-1 at home.
* Note: This total includes their franchise history in Seattle as the SuperSonics.
OKC era: Since relocation to OKC and rebrand as the Thunder in 2008, the team is 4-2 overall in Game 7s and 4-0 at home in Game 7s.
The last time …: OKC’s most recent Game 7 was in the 2025 NBA Finals vs. the Indiana Pacers. The Thunder won, 103-91, as Chet Holmgren set the record for most blocks (five) in a Finals Game 7. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the series MVP, finished with 29 points and 12 assists.
OKC in West Finals Game 7s: This will be the Thunder’s second-ever West Finals Game 7 since relocating to OKC.
OKC’s last Game 7 in the West Finals was in 2016 against Golden State, but that game happened on the road.
Saturday’s Game 7 marks the 10th anniversary of Game 7 in the Thunder-Warriors series. The Warriors forced Game 7 after a big comeback victory in Game 6 when Klay Thompson scored 41 points (and 11 3s), including 19 in the fourth quarter, in Oklahoma City.
The franchise played three West Finals while in Seattle and went 2-1 in those games.
Spurs in Game 7s
All-time: The franchise is 4-7 all-time in Game 7s and 1-5 in Game 7s on the road.
The last time …: The Spurs’ most recent Game 7 was in 2019 at Denver in the first round, which they lost, 90-86.
New ground: Saturday’s Game 7 in the West Finals is the first such game ever for San Antonio. The Spurs’ only other conference finals Game 7 was in 1979 … when San Antonio was in the Eastern Conference and lost, 107-105, to the then-Washington Bullets (now Washington Wizards) on May 18, 1979.
History afoot?: Should the Spurs win on Saturday, they would be the third road team to win a Game 7 this season. That would mark the first time in NBA history three road teams won a Game 7 in a single postseason.
Game 7 initiation: This will be the first Game 7 for several Spurs players, including Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle, Dylan Harper, Julian Champagnie, Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson.
Swat patrol: The record for most blocks in Game 7 — of any round of the playoffs — is seven. It has been done three times, once each by Caldwell Jones, Elvin Hayes and Dikembe Mutombo. Victor Wembanyama is averaging 3.7 bpg in the 2026 playoffs and recorded 12 blocks vs. Minnesota in Game 1 of the West semis and had seven blocks vs. Portland in Game 4 of the first round.
