Yes, an 8-seed has upset a 1-seed in the NBA playoffs
The Oklahoma City Thunder were a win away from making the NBA playoffs for the first time since 2020, but it wasn't to be.
In the finale of the NBA play-in tournament, the Thunder lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves, 120-95. The Timberwolves now enter the NBA playoffs as a No. 8 seed after finishing the season.
So, what kind of success have lower-seeded teams had in the playoffs?
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Last time 1-vs-8 upset was during 2012 NBA playoffs
In 2012, the Philadelphia 76ers took down the top-seeded Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference in six games after Derrick Rose was injured in Game 3 of the series.
But the 76ers run would be brief, losing in the next round to the Boston Celtics, who lost in the Eastern Conference Finals to the eventual NBA Champion that season, the Miami Heat. The Heat would claim the title with 4-1 series win over Oklahoma City.
It happened in the playoffs a year earlier, too
The San Antonio Spurs entered the 2011 postseason for the 14th straight season but met a hungry Memphis Grizzlies team. The Spurs lost to the Grizzlies in six games, earning the eighth-seeded team their first playoff series win in franchise history.
The Grizzlies would go on to face the Thunder, which defeated the Denver Nuggets in the opening round, the franchise's first playoff series win since relocating from Seattle to Oklahoma City.
The Thunder would win the series in seven games before losing to eventual NBA champions, the Dallas Mavericks, in five games in the Western Conference finals.
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2007 NBA playoffs: Another Western Conference 8 seed beat 1 seed
Just four years earlier, the Mavericks entered the postseason as the top seed in the west. The Golden State Warriors took them down in six games before losing to the Utah Jazz in the following round of the 2007 NBA playoffs.
The San Antonio Spurs won the title that year over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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Yes, an 8 seed has made it to the NBA Finals
In 1998, the NBA went through its third lockout in four years. After six months, an agreement was reached and the league was able to play a 50-game schedule.
Once the playoffs came around in 1999, the top-seeded Miami Heat faced the New York Knicks in the opening round. The NBA didn't move to a seven-game, first-round series until 2003, so the Knicks pulled off the upset in five games.
They weren't done there. They swept the Atlanta Hawks in four games and then took down their rivals, the Indiana Pacers, in six games to become the first No. 8 seed to play in the NBA Finals. The Cinderella story ended there when the Spurs won in five games.
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The 1994 Sonics were first No. 1 seed to lose first round of NBA playoffs
Almost 30 years ago, the Thunder's former selves made NBA history, but not in the way it wanted. After winning their first two games against the Nuggets, the Sonics dropped three straight, including Games 4 and 5 in overtime.
The Nuggets would come close to reaching the conference finals but lost to the Utah Jazz in the following round instead.
The 1994 Finals were won in seven games by the Rockets over the Knicks, both No. 2 seeds from each conference.
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The lowest seed to win the NBA Finals
After winning the 1994 championship, the Rockets returned to the NBA playoffs in 1995, this time as a No. 6 seed instead of a No. 2 seed. But that had no impact on the team, who stormed through the playoffs with wins against the Jazz (West No. 3), the Suns (West No. 2), the Spurs (West No. 1) and in the NBA Finals over the Orlando Magic (East No. 1).
A No. 5 seed has never won the NBA Finals, and only one No. 4 seed, the 1969 Boston Celtics, has won the championship.
No. 3 seeds have won it eight times, including the 2022 Golden State Warriors. No. 2 seeds have won the championship 16 times and the top seeds having done it a whopping 50 times.
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Nuggets vs. Timberwolves/Thunder first-round NBA Playoffs schedule
All times listed are Central Times:
Game 1: Sunday, April 16 at 9:30 p.m. in Denver
Game 2: Wednesday, April 19 at 9 p.m. in Denver
Game 3: Friday, April 21 at 8:30 p.m. in Oklahoma City/Minneapolis
Game 4: Sunday, April 23 at 8:30 p.m. in Oklahoma City/Minneapolis
Game 5* (if necessary): Tuesday, April 25, time TBD in Denver
Game 6* (if necessary): Thursday, April 27, time TBD in Oklahoma City/Minneapolis
Game 7* (if necessary): Saturday, April 29, time TBD in Denver
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: NBA playoffs upsets: 8-seed has beaten 1-seed, even made NBA Finals
