When they’re healthy, we’ll see if they can get back to their top form.
The Thunder started this season at 24-1 and looked like they would be a heavy favorite to win the championship. Since then, OKC went 18-13 into the All-Star break, and looked a lot more beatable. Likely MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is currently sidelined with an abdominal injury, Jalen Williams is battling a hamstring strain after being kept out with a wrist injury to start the year, and breakout sophomore Ajay Mitchell has also been in and out of the lineup lately.
OKC needs to know if Williams can get back to the All-NBA level he played at this year, because he just hasn’t been the same player this season. SGA can still take this team over the finish line, but his teammates need to hit some shots. The Thunder are still a pretty average shooting team from deep, and that can catch up to them in the playoffs. The defense will still be elite if Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Alex Caruso can all stay healthy for the playoffs, and that alone should make them the favorites before it starts. I really think SGA is a special player, and one of the three or four best guards the league has seen since Michael Jordan retired. He can carry the Thunder across the finish line to become the league’s first back-to-back champ since Kevin Durant was on the Golden State Warriors. It just doesn’t feel like this is an undeniable dynasty at this point.
