The Oklahoma City Thunder went 15-4 in regular-season action during October and November, good for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference and third in the NBA’s overall standings behind the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics.

Oklahoma City’s stellar defense has driven its success this season. The Thunder have swiped 11.9 steals per game (No. 1 in NBA), forced 19.2 turnovers per game (No. 1 in NBA), held opponents to 42.2% shooting (No. 1 in NBA), and accumulated a 103.3 defensive rating (No. 1 in NBA).

A slew of injuries has impacted the roster after last season’s fortunate team health. Chet Holmgren has missed nine straight games — and the majority of 10 games — after suffering a right hip fracture against the Golden State Warriors on Nov. 10. Isaiah Hartenstein did not play in the team’s first 15 games due to a non-displaced fracture in his left hand. Alex Caruso has missed six games with right hip soreness. Kenrich Williams underwent right knee surgery and missed the first 10 games of the season. Jaylin Williams has not played at all because of a right hamstring strain.

The Thunder’s star power and depth have sustained its high level of play. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Luguentz Dort have played and started in every game. Cason Wallace still has not missed a game in his professional career. Aaron Wiggins and second-round rookie guard Ajay Mitchell have also played all 19 games.

Oklahoma City’s superstar has averaged 29.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.7 steals per game on 61.4% true shooting. He has recorded a career-high assist percentage (33.1%) and block percentage (3.2%) on a career-high usage rate (33.6%).

Gilgeous-Alexander is one of two NBA players (Nikola Jokic) to accumulate a box plus-minus over 10, and his 3.6 total win shares lead all players. Only Gilgeous-Alexander, Franz Wagner and Jayson Tatum have more than four estimated wins based on estimated plus-minus and minutes played.

The Thunder’s current net rating is 14.4 points per possessions better with Gilgeous-Alexander on the court than with him on the bench. His +203 plus-minus leads all NBA players — the next-highest Thunder player is Luguentz Dort at a +130 plus-minus.

The reigning MVP runner-up has been an even better scorer when games tighten up. In 18.4 clutch-time minutes, Gilgeous-Alexander has tallied 29 points on 15 field-goal attempts and 14 free-throw attempts — good for a 68.5% true shooting percentage. He has made four of his seven clutch 3-point attempts, including back-to-back early daggers against the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers this week.

Any player blocking the reigning — and three-time — MVP Nikola Jokic down low would be worth the price of admission. After all, Jokic is shooting 65.2% at the rim and 56.1% between three and 10 feet this year. Holmgren not only stuffed the Denver center’s interior attempt right to Cason Wallace, but he also ran the floor and received a well-timed bounce pass from Gilgeous-Alexander for an emphatic dunk over Peyton Watson.

This memorable sequence put the Thunder up 80-66 in its season opener, an eventual 15-point win. Oklahoma City recorded double-digit victories in seven straight games to begin the season.

No other game this season has defined the optimal version of the Thunder more than this one. Oklahoma City won three of the four factors, earning a +13.3% effective field-goal differential and forcing nine more turnovers than it committed — Trae Young recorded as many turnovers (10) as every Thunder player combined. Oklahoma City also won the fourth quarter 39-18.

The Thunder’s Big Three all had excellent statistical performances. Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren and Jalen Williams combined for 80 points on 53 shots and 27 free throws, 27 rebounds, 18 assists, nine blocks and six steals, with an average +19 plus-minus.

Gilgeous-Alexander made 13 of his 21 field-goal attempts, four of his eight 3-point attempts and 15 of his 16 free-throw attempts for an efficient 45 points. He added nine assists, five steals, two blocks and three rebounds for a 46.5 game score, by far the highest of any Thunder player this season.

Oklahoma City needed all his points to stymie the Clippers’ best efforts — the visitors went 20-for-37 from downtown and racked up 15 offensive rebounds. Norman Powell scored 31 points on 15 field-goal attempts and eight free-throw attempts.

Two-way turnovers have been the Thunder’s biggest strength for years. A 12.5% turnover percentage (5th in NBA) and 15.5% opponent turnover percentage (1st in NBA) last season gave the team a pristine +3.0% turnover differential, which has increased substantially so far.

This year, Oklahoma City is committing turnovers on 12.0% of team possessions (2nd in NBA) and forcing turnovers on 19.1% of opponent possessions (1st in NBA), meaning its turnover differential has more than doubled from a sky-high standard.

The Thunder have forced at least 15 turnovers in 18 of 19 games, and at least 20 turnovers in eight games. Oklahoma City only lost the turnover battle on Nov. 25 against the Sacramento Kings, yet still won by 21 points due to shooting 14-for-31 from deep, grabbing more offensive rebounds and attempting more free throws.

Oklahoma City plays its first December game tomorrow night in Houston against the Rockets at 6 p.m. CST.

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