The Oklahoma City Thunder insist they haven't been perfect during their NBA title defense. But their playoff record tells a different story—spotless at 8-0.

Monday night, the defending champions completed their second consecutive series sweep, holding off a resilient Lakers squad 115-110 in Game 4 of the second round. The Thunder dominated LeBron James and the Lakers all season, going 8-0 against them, and have now swept both the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles en route to an unblemished postseason start.

Sure, coach Mark Daigneault can point to areas for improvement. MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander warns the job isn't finished. But the Thunder are undeniably the class of the NBA right now, riding a historic playoff streak after a dominant regular season. They're chasing the league's first back-to-back championships since the Golden State Warriors accomplished the feat in 2017 and 2018.

General manager Sam Presti's relentless machine looks nearly unbeatable as it heads to the Western Conference finals for the second straight year—and the sixth time in the past 16 seasons.

"We've done our job so far, that's all it really means," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "We've gone out there, executed, played at a high level, and won eight tough games against really good opponents. Nothing is guaranteed. In the playoffs, no two games are the same, especially when you change opponents. The challenges are all coming up."

Next up: a date with either the San Antonio Spurs or the Minnesota Timberwolves in the conference finals. The Thunder will enjoy several extra days of rest while those teams battle it out in a tight series heading to Game 5. But whoever emerges from that slugfest will face the NBA's biggest challenge—a smooth, relentless Thunder squad operating at an even higher level than last season's title run.