Will Thunder Strike Again?

Evaluating the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Ability to Repeat in 2025-26

By: Liam Grealish 10/15/25

The 2025 Thunder Celebrating a Game 7 Victory in the NBA Finals

As the 2025-26 NBA season approaches, one thing is certain: the road to the championship runs through Oklahoma City. In the blink of an eye, the Thunder have gone from a rebuilding project to the league’s metric for how to construct an excellent roster, and now, the rest of the NBA is coming for their crown.

Just two years ago, the Thunder were one of the league’s youngest squads, averaging just 23.9 years of age , making them the youngest in the playoffs at the time. What followed was a rapid rise that no one could have scripted so perfectly from a front office standpoint. OKC stormed to a 68-14 record in 2024-25 , the best in franchise history and one of the 15 most winning seasons in NBA history . To cap off a historic regular season, they beat the Indiana Pacers in 7 games to claim the franchise’s first championship since relocating from Seattle in 2008.

At the heart of the team's success was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has since cemented himself as the face of a new generation of superstars. He, for players aged 26, became the third person to win both MVP and Finals MVP in the same season . On top of that, he led in free throws made, was second in steals, and finished top five in scoring for the second year in a row. Alongside SGA, players like Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren rose to stardome. J-Dub averaged 20 points on 53% shooting and Chet’s unique shot-blocking and shooting ability made him a nightmare matchup for other bigs.

Despite the team's success, however, the NBA hasn’t seen a team go back-to-back since the 2017-2018 Golden State Warriors , which was an all time great squad composed of several Hall of Famers. The Thunder, on the other hand, remain a team with an average NBA experience of ~250 career games, meaning they lack both the talent and experience that the last championship repeat squad had.

However, their conference is truly the wild west. Teams like the Dallas Mavericks, Denver Nuggets, and Minnesota Timberwolves loom large. Further, the pure size in the western conference is hard to compete with. With big names in the frontcourts like Cooper Flagg and Anthony Davis, Rudy Gobert and KAT, Jokic, Sabonis, Zion, and Wembanyama, size is true testament to the Western conference’s grit.

What is unique about OKC, however, is their continuity - something that few champions (especially the Celtics) get to enjoy. Every key rotation player will return this season, and the front office, led by perhaps the best current GM in the league, Sam Presti, still owns a league high 13 future first-round picks through 2031! Thus, their combination of strength in their present roster and flexibility in the future is unprecedented in league history. As ESPN’s Brian Windhorst put it, “The Thunder didn’t just win early , but they built something that can last.” To repeat, the team will need to utilize more than its talent. On top of their front office, roster, and picks, they have a great coach in Mark Daigneault who likes to run a motion-heavy offense. This system, despite ranking top five in both efficiency and pace, must evolve to find the same success they did last year; teams, especially in the west, will almost certainly scheme to expose their size disadvantages (rebounding) on the glass. Because of all of their strengths though, staying healthy may be their greatest challenge yet.

Still, something about this team feels sustainable. With a retained roster, proven chemistry, and excellent staffing, in the words of SGA, the Thunder may truly be “ just getting started .”