With the NBA season concluding on Wednesday night, the NBA playoff seedings are officially set. Owning the best record in the NBA at 68-14, the Warriors earned the top seed in the Western Conference and homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs. The Warriors will host the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. The full seedings, as well as a first round preview of the Warriors’ series against Oklahoma City, are below.

Full Playoff Seedings

Western Conference

(1) Golden State Warriors vs (8) Oklahoma City Thunder

(2) Los Angeles Lakers vs (7) Utah Jazz

(3) Houston Rockets vs (6) San Antonio Spurs)

(4) Denver Nuggets vs (5) Los Angeles Clippers

Eastern Conference

(1) Philadelphia 76ers vs (8) Orlando Magic

(2) Milwaukee Bucks vs (7) Toronto Raptors

(3) Boston Celtics vs (6) Detroit Pistons

(4) Chicago Bulls vs (5) Miami Heat

Golden State Warriors vs Oklahoma City Thunder Series Preview

The Warriors and Thunder square off yet again in a matchup of two of the most successful franchises of the last decade. This is the first meeting since the 2016 Western Conference Finalists, when the Warriors overcame a 3-1 series deficit to defeat the Thunder and reach their second consecutive NBA Finals.

The Thunder are led by Chris Paul, who was acquired via trade last season. Paul averaged 19.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 8.4 assists in his first season with the Thunder, as well as 1.9 steals, which helped land him on the All-Defensive Second Team. Danilo Gallinari, who was acquired when the Thunder dealt Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers, averaged 19.1 points in his first year with Oklahoma City, as well as 6.9 rebounds per game.

Oklahoma City provides a multi-faceted attack, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (13.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists) and Dennis Schroder (18.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists) providing a three-headed attack on offense. The Thunder defense is just as daunting, with their three-guard lineup supported by Steven Adams (12.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 1.4 blocks) in the backend.

While the Warriors took three of four regular season matchups, they’ll need to play at a high caliber if they plan on advancing. The Thunder boast the NBA’s fourth-best defense, allowing opponents to shoot just 45.8% from the floor and 34.4% from beyond the arc. That being said, the Thunder offense was less than stellar, shooting a league-average 46.0% from the floor.

For the Warriors to win, they’ll look to push the pace and avoid playing into the Thunder’s rough and tumble approach. If the Warriors shots are falling from outside, their chances of advancing will rise.