Magic Johnson Warns Thunder, Spurs May Rule West for 5-7 Years
magic johnson praised Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Victor Wembanyama after San Antonio’s double-overtime Game 1 win, then delivered a blunt warning to the rest of the Western Conference. He said the Thunder and Spurs may be out of reach for 5-7 years, a long view built on one MVP season and one huge playoff night.
Johnson Sees Thunder, Spurs Ahead
Johnson congratulated Gilgeous-Alexander on winning back-to-back MVP awards, then tied that recognition to Oklahoma City’s rise. The NBA named Gilgeous-Alexander the 2025-26 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player after a season in which he averaged 31.1 points, 6.6 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.40 steals while shooting 55.3% from the field and 38.6% from three-point range.
That is the profile Johnson pointed to when he wrote, “I hate to break the news to the rest of the Western Conference, but they may not have a chance to win the Western Conference Finals for the next 5-7 years.” It was not a throwaway line. It linked one player’s numbers, and one team’s ceiling, to the broader balance of power in the West.
Wembanyama’s Game 1 Response
Johnson’s other headline came from Victor Wembanyama’s 41-point, 24-rebound, three-block performance in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. He said Wembanyama “put on an incredible show” and scored “from everywhere on the basketball court,” including a “Steph Curry like 3 pointer down the stretch.”
San Antonio backed that effort with a double-overtime win over Oklahoma City, even after De’Aaron Fox missed Game 1 with a sprained right ankle. Dylan Harper also played a key role for the Spurs, giving them enough production around Wembanyama to open the series with a road victory.
Oklahoma City’s Path So Far
Oklahoma City arrived here after sweeping Los Angeles out of the second round with a 115-110 Game 4 win. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points in that clincher, another sign that the Thunder’s core is already producing at a level that can carry series wins deep into the postseason.
That is why Johnson’s warning landed so hard. He was not projecting on a vague future; he was pointing to a Thunder team led by a two-time regular-season MVP and a Spurs team that just beat them in double overtime behind Wembanyama’s 41-point outburst. For the rest of the West, the immediate task is simple: deal with those two now, because Johnson sees the next several years moving through them.
