As Oklahoma City celebrated its first-ever NBA title Sunday night, speculation began about how many more this version of the Thunder might be able to get, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. The Game 7 win over Indiana made OKC the second-youngest champion in NBA history, and Reynolds points out that the organization is set up very well for the future.
The Thunder are built around Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who completed the rare feat of winning MVP, Finals MVP and a scoring title in the same season. SGA and just about other every important player on the roster are under contract for next season, and rookie scale extensions are looming for Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams. Oklahoma City has a treasure trove of draft assets, including the No. 15 and 24 picks this year, along with Nikola Topic, a 2024 lottery pick who sat out the entire season due to injury.
“We definitely still have room to grow,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “That’s the fun part of this. So many of us can still get better. There’s not very many of us on the team that are in our prime or even close to it. We have a lot to grow, individually and as a group. I’m excited for the future of this team. This is a great start, for sure.”
“There’s no guarantee you end it the way that we did,” Daigneault said. “I just wanted it so bad for them. I was just so thrilled that we were able to get that done and they get to experience this because they deserve it. The way they approach it, the professionalism, competitiveness, team-first nature, like I said, I wanted it so bad for them.”
There’s more from Oklahoma City:
- An offseason trade for Alex Caruso added to the Thunder’s collection of elite defenders, notes Kelly Iko of The Athletic. Caruso’s versatility and his willingness to do things that aren’t glamorous made him an indispensable part of the championship run. “I think just through my career, I figured out that I can do stuff that’s not necessarily sexy or not necessarily the mainstream offensive or even defensive skill set that people recognize,” Caruso said. “I just leaned into it. I practiced being great at the stuff that nobody else does, carving a role for myself in the league. I think through the years, I’ve just kind of perfected that stuff.”
- Holmgren set a record Sunday night by blocking five shots, the most ever in an NBA Finals Game 7 since blocks began being recorded in 1973/74, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. It was a satisfying conclusion for Holmgren, who missed more than half of the regular season due to a hip injury. “Honestly, I never really play for records,” he said. “I never play for stats. All that will be forgotten. But us winning is forever. It’s immortal. I’m just so happy we were able to do that together as a team.”
- Luguentz Dort would normally be a strong extension candidate, but it won’t be an easy decision for the Thunder, who already have extension decisions to make on Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren and Williams, Bobby Marks of ESPN writes in his offseason guide. Marks also expects OKC to aggressively look for trades involving its two first-round picks and one second-rounder in Wednesday’s draft.
I think OKC needs another ball handler in the 2nd unit, they have a few shooters off the bench but in terms of another ball handler who can create his own shot. I would be targeting with the 15th pick of the draft.
Congrats to OKC though. Helluva year and the best team all season. SGA was making the correct play yesterday rather than forcing his shot. West be a gauntlet next year with a healthy Luka in LA, an upcoming Houston Rockets team and a Spurs team that should be in the mix as well.
They look like they could really use another 3pt shooter. Where was Isaiah Joe in this series? I was surprised that he barely played.
That’s what Topic is likely going to do so they have that.
As for dynasty talk? Who knows, but the team isn’t getting any worse next year.(barring injury). More than likely they’ll be competing for it at least.
Fans and media did this two years ago with the Nuggets and Last year with the Celtics. Pump the breaks on Dynasty. If\when they win one next year then we can talk about it.
i was just about to say the same thing. Wait until a team wins 2 in a row before talking dynasty.
Dynasty talk is boy who cried wolf now. Every champion this decade was supposed to be a dynasty outside of Warriors and Lakers. OKC needed two game 7s including one against a Nuggets team who blew it up before the playoffs. This is no dynasty
I’d argue the Nuggets, Bucks, and Celtics all could have been dynasties if they didn’t ruin their draft equity and cap space with short sighted transactions.
Same is true about OKC. They can be a dynasty. But unlike those other teams, OKC has a real front office that values sustainability.
the new CBA is buolt to break up any team that dominates. next year they can bring back teh same team to be a top 4 team but with spuirs, Rockets and even nuggets in that top 3 it will be tough.