In addition to going 6-0 for the first time since moving to the Southwest in 2008, the OKC Thunder also became the first team in NBA history to win each of its first six games by at least 12 Points lead won. Can they extend the streak against an Orlando Magic squad missing Paolo Banchero and possibly Wendell Carter Jr.?

In order for them to achieve this, three key pairings must play an important role in achieving this goal.

1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander vs. Magic’s guards

The Thunder’s offense still runs through Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and he faces a tough matchup here on Monday night. Jalen Suggs and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope form one of the best guard tandems in the entire NBA when it comes to perimeter defense. Orlando also has Anthony Black coming off the bench, allowing them to use disruptive defenders at SGA throughout the game.

According to Cleaning the Glass, OKC is scoring a terrible 108.2 points per 100 possessions this season when its superstar is on a break. If they don’t get productive minutes from him, the offense here could get extremely ugly.

2. Jalen Suggs vs. Thunders guards

In Orlando’s first game back from Paolo Banchero’s oblique injury, Jalen Suggs picked up the slack on offense by scoring 28 points and dishing out seven assists. The Magic desperately need this level of performance from the former lottery pick to put together a reasonably competent offense by the time their All-Star returns.

However, Lu Dort, Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace will likely make it a bit difficult for them to achieve this.

Because of their brilliance, the Thunder are holding pick-and-roll ball handlers to a paltry 0.44 points per possession. For comparison: The Mavericks currently have the second-best value with 0.7 points per possession.

It also doesn’t hurt to have Chet Holmgren eliminating mistakes around the basket for this Thunder’s hyper-elite defense.

If Oklahoma City completely shuts down Suggs’ scoring and playmaking, it’s difficult to imagine the Magic being able to keep up unless there’s an unusually great three-point shooting night.

3. Chet Holmgren’s interior defense

Franz Wagner relies on slashing to make a big impact, and the Magic are shooting just 32.3 percent on triples. In other words, Orlando needs to succeed in the paint.

Chet Holmgren has a chance to be a real game destroyer here. He leads the league in blocks per game and ranks second in contested shots per game. Another outstanding interior defensive performance from the rising star would likely derail Orlando’s offense.

Wendell Carter Jr.’s outside shooting could occasionally pull Holmgren away from the basket, although he is in the midst of a slump, having shot just 2 of 14 from deep in five games. Plus, he might miss the competition anyway with a foot injury, so the big game won’t matter anyway.

All in all, look for Holmgren to be the difference maker for the Thunder in this matchup.