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The Thunder have completed their journey from tanking to a title.
Nine years after Kevin Durant left the franchise and six after the team kickstarted a rebuild by trading Paul George, the Thunder won the NBA Finals on Sunday night, defeating the Pacers 103-91 in Game 7. The Thunder pulled away in the third quarter after the Pacers lost star guard Tyrese Haliburton to an Achilles injury in the first quarter.
The championship is the organization’s first since moving to Oklahoma City from Seattle in 2008. Previously, the Seattle Supersonics won the NBA title in 1979.
Now the Thunder have to answer the next question everyone is associating with them. Can they break the NBA’s trend of title parity and become the league’s next dynasty? Seven different franchises have won the last seven titles, but few have had the opportunity the Thunder do.
GM Sam Presti built the roster by trading George for a package highlighted by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander while drafting Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams to form a young nucleus. To fill in the gaps, he signed high-level role players in free agency. He got the roster there by avoiding star chasing and showing patience with a young coach and team.
The Thunder are set to return their entire rotation next season, headlined by Gilgeous-Alexander, the league’s MVP and Finals MVP, the first player in 25 years to take home both honors. The Thunder ranked 24th in team salary this season at $165 million—well below the luxury tax—and don’t face the financial reckoning that other contenders like the Celtics, Cavaliers, and Nuggets will have to address this summer.
Youth Rules in OKC
And the Thunder don’t just have continuity working in their favor. They have youth. OKC boasts the league’s fourth-youngest roster with an average age of 24.7, according to Elias, making them the NBA’s second-youngest champion, trailing only the 1977 Trail Blazers (24.2), who were led by 24-year-old Bill Walton.
The 2015 Warriors won their first title at an average age of just over 26, and went on to win three more titles with that core. Can the Thunder do something similar in an era where the collective bargaining agreement is designed to punish high spenders?
Pay Now, Win Later?
This summer will be the first indicator of the Thunder’s future, as Holmgren and Williams are eligible for their first contract extensions. They’re eligible for the same deal, which would pay $42.5 million in the 2026–27 season, but could increase by $9 million if either is named All-NBA next season.
Gilgeous-Alexander is eligible for a four-year, $293 million extension that could increase to $380 million over five years if he waits a year. He fired his agent months ago in preparation for either deal.
NBA teams tend to imitate the title winner, though it will be difficult to replicate Presti’s record in trades and the draft. Durant was traded to the Rockets on Sunday, which could be the first in a flurry of star players being dealt this summer, and impatient owners aren’t always up for a rebuild. Tanking teams weren’t rewarded in the lottery this year, either. But the Thunder have shown there is a narrow path to walk from the bottom of the league to the top.
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