It has been a tough ride for the Oklahoma City Thunder this season. On some nights, the Thunder appear to be championship contenders with a purpose. On others, the Thunder look lost and immensely inconsistent. This trend of inconsistency isn't a good look for a team with championship aspirations.

In any case, the Thunder have tried to remain positive that their worst basketball is behind them, but it hasn't appeared that way at all. The Thunder currently rank seventh in the Western Conference. This is amazingly disappointing, considering that the Thunder actually are a spot from where they were last year in regards to postseason positioning, even with the added help of Paul George and Carmelo Anthony.

If the Thunder don't begin a postseason run soon, they could miss their opportunity to secure homecourt advantage and gain a higher seed in the playoffs. To make matters worse, the Thunder are currently 4-9 against playoff teams since the beginning of the year. George still believes that his team has a good chance of finishing out the season strong, per Erik Horne of the Oklahoman.

Thunder is 4-9 since Jan. 1 against teams currently qualified for the playoffs. Said Paul George, “It’s no secret we haven’t been good coming out of the (All-Star) break, but the good thing is we‘ve got a playoff (chase) finish.

The Thunder have the benefit of the doubt in this situation. When the pressure is on them, you can believe that Russell Westbrook and his team will come through. However, the Thunder might settle for the lower postseason seeds, which is dangerous. Against the top-tier teams in the Western Conference, inconsistency such as this has to cease.