Thunder enter NBA playoffs respectful of everyone but fearful of no one

OKLAHOMA CITY — On the eve of his playoff debut, Chet Holmgren couldn’t wait to take the court.

“I’m very anxious,” the Oklahoma City Thunder star said Saturday, ahead of Game 1 Sunday against the New Orleans Pelicans. “I’m ready to play, ready to get it on. I’m excited for it. I wouldn’t say nervous. But I’m anxious, for sure.”

Holmgren and the Western Conference’s top-seeded Thunder had six days off after closing the regular season last Sunday. Rest helped. Holmgren’s focus remained. He called the time off refreshing but said he didn’t stray far from the team’s practice facility.

“I wasn’t just sitting around,” he said. “I was still in here doing what I love to do.”

Finally, after a fantastic regular season that bordered on dominance, the time has come to see how it comes together in the postseason. No one can be sure how far the Thunder will journey this postseason. After crafting a top-five offense and defense, they certainly have the makeup of a team capable of making a deep playoff run. What remains to be seen is how they’ll overcome the potential perils of youth and inexperience popping up within a seven-game series.

With an average age of 23.4 years, the Thunder are the youngest No. 1-seeded team in NBA history, according to StatMuse. Only six Thunder players have playoff experience: Gordon Hayward, Bismack Biyombo, Mike Muscala, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort and Isaiah Joe. They’ve combined for only 2,623 postseason minutes over 134 playoff contests.

For comparison, Pelicans starters CJ McCollum and Jonas Valančiūnas alone have combined to play 1,047 more postseason minutes than the Thunder’s roster and only 17 fewer playoff games.

And yet Holmgren, 10 days shy of his 22nd birthday, sounded like a leader on a team of battle-tested players who’ve been here before. He spoke calmly as he discussed everything from his playoff memories growing up to the playoff mentality he’s carrying into Game 1.

“The playoffs are a time of huge swings,” Holmgren said. “And you can’t let the swing of things allow your emotions to run wild in one direction or the other, good or bad. If you win one game, the series isn’t over. If you lose one game, the series isn’t over. So it doesn’t matter what fashion you lose or win with. A buzzer-beater, a blowout, it doesn’t matter. You’ve got to get ready for the next game because no team’s going to roll over and give you anything.”

After seizing the West’s No. 1 seed, the Thunder are no longer a team of the future, although there’s ample runway for endless possibilities with the team’s core and the way the franchise is positioned for the long term. But Oklahoma City has arrived. Sunday is the first chance for the players to prove it, and a dominant playoff opener will only raise their already sky-high external expectations.

The Thunder are back in the postseason for the first time in three seasons and, whether this season or any…