Surging Oklahoma City Thunder hold off Boston Celtics - ESPN

OKLAHOMA CITY — Add another contender to the Oklahoma City Thunder's list of impressive recent conquests.

The Thunder built a big lead over Boston and held off a late comeback bid for a 127-123 win Tuesday night over the Celtics, owners of the NBA's best record.

Oklahoma City has won eight of its past nine games, putting the Thunder second in the Western Conference at 23-9. That span has featured wins over elite competition, including the first-place teams from both conferences (the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Celtics) and the defending champion Denver Nuggets, who Oklahoma City beat twice on the road.

«That's a talented young team, and I don't believe this was some fluke game for them,» Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis said after his 34-point, 10-rebound performance wasn't enough to prevent Boston's six-game winning streak from being snapped. «They've been playing really well. They're at the top of the West, no? So a really good team to go up against and a really good experience for us.»

The Thunder's five-game winning streak includes a 23-point home blowout of the Timberwolves and a 26-point road rout of the Nuggets. Oklahoma City seemed to be on the verge of another lopsided win over the Celtics, going up by 18 with 8:25 left in the fourth quarter.

Oklahoma City, which has the second-youngest roster in the NBA, is putting together a case to be considered a contender, following up a 14-win improvement last season at 40-42. The Thunder own the league's fourth-best record, rank third in net rating (plus-8.5), fourth in defensive rating (110.7) and fifth in offensive rating (119.2).

The Thunder, however, have no interest in discussing whether they already belong in the contender conversation.

«It says that we're