Five teams had already given away home court advantage by the time the Oklahoma City Thunder tipped off Game 2 of their first-round series with the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night. Chet Holmgren took note. So did the rest of his team.
The Thunder centre joined Inside The NBA's TNT panel for an in-game interview after Oklahoma City's 120-107 win at Paycom Center, putting them 2-0 up against an eight-seed Phoenix outfit that had threatened to ride Devin Booker into a series. Holmgren went for 19 points, eight rebounds and four blocks. Asked whether watching the playoffs unfold around him had got his attention, his answer suggested the Thunder are not letting last year's championship soften their grip.
"Yeah. I love to watch basketball. I've been watching pretty much every single game. And I definitely kind of took note of that," Holmgren said when Charles Barkley pressed him on the upset wave. "Understanding that we can't take our foot off the gas. We got to come out the same way we came out Game 1. They were great tonight. They made big shots, big plays all night, but we were able to weather the storm and keep home court advantage."
The win was not as comfortable as the score suggested. After leading by as many as 24 in the second half, Oklahoma City watched Phoenix cut the deficit to 10 inside the final minutes. Head coach Mark Daigneault called timeout. Holmgren explained the message.
"Not play the scoreboard," he said. "Play our stuff, get our stuff in the game and finish the game out. I feel like, especially me, I got to be better down the stretch there. We executed on both ends of the floor, but we were able to get the job done."
Kenny Smith asked Holmgren about the four-man rotation Oklahoma City has been mixing all postseason: Holmgren as the lone big, Hartenstein as the lone big, both together, and a five-out small look without either. Holmgren grinned through the answer.
"I think it's a lot of fun no matter what I'm doing out there. But I love playing with Big Hart. He throws me a couple lobs here and there. We probably got the best lob connection on the team. And then I get to run around and shoot a few more threes when I'm at the four. I think that's fun."
Shaquille O'Neal, who has spent the postseason needling Holmgren about whether the Thunder have a target on their back, asked the question he had been saving. As reigning champions on a second title hunt, what is comfort level versus concern level?
Holmgren had a line ready.
"In the playoffs, you should never be comfortable," he said. "If you're comfortable, that means your foot isn't on the gas enough. We're just trying to keep our foot on the gas. Continue to get better. Leave it all out there on the floor every single night. I wouldn't say it's a concern thing or anything like that. We're just trying to get better with every game, chase improvement, and we got to trust where that leaves us."
Barkley closed the interview with a question that turned awkward. Forward Jalen Williams had pulled up holding his hamstring late in the third quarter and walked off without coming back — the same hamstring he tweaked in Game 1, or the other leg? Holmgren straightened up.
"Honestly, I didn't see the play. I just looked up and noticed that he wasn't out there in his normal rotation. I was asking around and he was back in the locker room. I don't know what happened. That's going to be up to the medical staff to fill you guys in. I have no idea, but I hope it's not nothing serious."
The Inside crew laughed at the company line. Kenny Smith called it "great answer, Chad," misnaming Holmgren on air. "Snitches get stitches," Barkley joked. "Don't tell them nothing, Chad."
Reports surfaced after the broadcast that Williams had aggravated his left hamstring — opposite to the right hamstring he had reportedly favoured earlier in the night. The Thunder will be without precise clarity until at least Saturday morning, when imaging is expected to confirm the severity. Williams finished Game 2 with 19 points, eight rebounds and four blocks of his own.
The Thunder are heavy favourites to advance, with the series shifting to Phoenix for Game 3 on Sunday afternoon. They lead 2-0, hold a 13-point average margin through two games, and have outscored the Suns by 38 in halfcourt possessions. The only cloud is the one Holmgren refused to acknowledge in real time.
"You win a game, you got the series under control, and now you got to worry about that," Barkley said as the panel returned from the interview. "Cause those hamstrings, man, those things are temperamental."
Holmgren is keeping the message simple. Foot on the gas.
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*Originally published on [NBA News Global](https://nbanews.global/article/chet-holmgren-thunder-suns-game-2-comfort-level-hartenstein-lob-2026). Visit for full coverage.*
