It can get lonely at the top. The Oklahoma City Thunder climbed the mountain and reached the Championship summit for the first time in franchise history.
With the OKC Thunder hoisting the Larry O’Brien trophy with a roster so young that many of them were lucky no one was checking IDs before the Champagne showers back in June, it is easy to place the pressure of a dynasty on this group.
After all, a few short weeks after the confetti fell in the Paycom Center, the Thunder locked up superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, All-NBA swingman Jalen Williams and Rising Star center Chet Holmgren to long-term pacts while also securing the futures of key reserves Jaylin Williams and Ajay Mitchell.
The Thunder’s 15 players on standard contracts return 14 members from that title team, with Dillon Jones being the only departure as the Bricktown ballers shipped the 2024 NBA Draft first round pick to Washington to make room for the No. 15 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Thomas Sorber, to join Oklahoma City’s title defense force.
If any fanbase should understand the hurdles involved in winning a championship, it should be Oklahoma City. While you first and foremost need talent, you also need luck en route to a title. Luck that stems from injuries, the bounce of the ball and more whack factors that pop up in the postseason.
However, it doesn’t feel like a bold prediction to proclaim that the Thunder will be better in the 2025-26 campaign than they were in the 2024-25 season that ended with a championship.
May 26, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA;Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren (7) reacts with forward Jalen Williams (8) in the second half during game four of the western conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images / Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
As the joy of a championship washed over Oklahoma City, it is hard to look back on the 2025 playoff run with anything but jubilation in Bricktown. You never forget your first, no matter how it unfolds, and this was the Thunder’s first championship.
However, when you look under the hood of this run, it is easy to tab this as a “B” outcome from the OKC Thunder. That should scare the rest of the league.
The Thunder ranked 13th out of 16 playoff teams in 3-point shooting, turning in 33.8% from beyond the arc in 23 games. That mark shouldn’t be good enough to win a championship in the modern era, but it was thanks to Oklahoma City’s historic defense. In the regular season, the Thunder shot 37% from 3-point land, ranking them sixth in the league over the course of the 82 games. That is a massive drop off that can mostly be attributed to poor variants from deep. The odds suggest that in the next playoff run, this team will be granted a better showing from distance.
Oklahoma City’s no. 2 scorer, Jalen Williams, rattled off a legacy-defining run that was capped off with a 40-point outing in the NBA Finals…with a torn ligament in his wrist. Throughout the NBA Playoffs, the Santa Clara product had to rework his shot and almost re-learn his identity as a player to help aid his ailing wrist.
Williams averaged 21 points, five rebounds, four assists and nearly two stocks (steals + rebounds) per game while shooting 44% from the floor, 30% from beyond the arc, and 78% from the charity stripe. Imagine what the All-NBA wing would’ve done with a healthy wrist.
There is also room for internal improvement among this young core, such as Cason Wallace, Ajay Mitchell, and even role players like Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe growing comfortable on a big stage.
May 20, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) and forward Chet Holmgren (7) react after a play in the fourth quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves during game one of the western conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
I know everyone grew sick of hearing about how young the Thunder were during the course of the 2024-25 campaign, a weapon used to temper expectations on the eventual Champions, but it was and still is true.
The Thunder are an anomaly, winning an NBA championship with a group this young. A top three made up of two 2022 NBA Draftees. That is Oklahoma City’s weapon moving forward.
This is the worst version of Holmgren and he was good enough to shoulder the load defensively in the Thunder’s title quest. Let’s not forget that the Gonzaga product was bedridden after fracturing his hip on Nov. 10.
Not only did Holmgren battle back to return to the Hardwood, but he alsosuited up earlier than expected for the Bricktown Ballers returning on Feb. 7. He clearly lost his legs during the course of his postseason making his naturally flat shot flatter than a route 44 Dr. Pepper left in the back of a Toyota Corolla in the middle of July.
Prior to his hip injury, albeit just nine games, Holmgren was posting All-Star numbers, turning in 18 points, nine rebounds, two assists, three blocks and a steal per game on 51/40/77 shooting splits, getting to the free throw line a jaw-dropping five times a night.
Holmgren flashed great skill playing off the catch to get downhill and attack the rim, and he was a great pick-and-pop option as he nailed catch-and-shoot triples. That is the talent level that rests inside the Thunder center and all indications point to it returning this season.
While the Santa Clara Williams made a leap in year-three, being named an All-Star, cast to the All-NBA squad, tabbed for All-Defense and dropped 40 points in a finals game, the 24-year-old still hasn’t peaked.
His 3-point percentage dripped from 42% to 36% last season, which should be able to progress, it wasn’t until the playoffs, with a wrist that would later require surgery, that Williams turned into a force at the rim. He got downhill at will, which netted him not only more free-throw attempts but easier buckets and opened up passing lanes. A full season with that mindset would take the now four-year man to another level.
Cason Wallace is entering a contract year and is already one of the best point-of-attack defenders in the NBA. Similar to Williams, Wallace took a step back from 3-point land, turning in 42% as a rookie down to 35% in year two. If his deep ball returns in year three, it changes his game and the Thunder’s offense. The Kentucky product did show more playing off the catch and with the ball in his hands as a sophomore, an area of his game that will only continue to progress.
Ajay Mitchell was a staple of Oklahoma City’s rotation during his rookie campaign but saw his season cut short due to a toe injury. If Mitchell can duplicate his success as an off-ball play-finisher, where he turned in 38% shooting off the catch to couple with his 57% at the rim, he not only is a complementary piece for the Thunder, but he also flashed play-making chops in his 36 games to help aid OKC’s secondary unit in the half-court.
This is before mentioning the additions of rookies Nikola Topic, Thomas Sorber and Brooks Barnhizer. While keeping in tact some of the league’s best role players like Lu Dort, Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein. A year ago, even Arkansas big man Jaylin Williams took a massive step forward, particularly on the defensive end.
The future remains bright in Bricktown largely due to internal development.
May 18, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) is defended by Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) and guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) as he passes the ball in the first quarter during game seven of the second round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Another big aspect in the Thunder’s chances to repeat –– and improve –– next season is the rest of the league. While the Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets have stolen headlines this Summer for good reason with revamped rosters, Oklahoma City remains better than these two contenders.
The rest of the Western Conference didn’t do nearly enough to make up ground on the Thunder, while the Eastern Conference remains irrelevant, with two and a half teams being eyed as possible champions.
This will be no small task to be the league’s first repeat winners in eight years, but Oklahoma City has put itself in a better position than past champions to get the job done.
Song of the Day: Don’t Stop Til’ You Get Enough by Michael Jackson