The Thunder don’t just loom over the Western Conference as a title threat. They may be the reason three of the West’s biggest coaching seats start to heat up.
That’s the angle from ESPN’s latest look at five coaches whose jobs are “warming up,” and Oklahoma City shows up everywhere in the conversation. San Antonio’s Mitch Johnson, Denver’s David Adelman and Houston’s Ime Udoka were all included, with the Thunder’s rise sitting right in the middle of the pressure on each of them.
For Denver and Houston, the message is pretty blunt: if they can’t get past Oklahoma City, the questions will get louder fast. Both teams have largely stayed the course from last season to this one, and both coaches are expected to squeeze more out of rosters that have already hit a ceiling against the Thunder. Adelman has been on the job for a year and a half, while Udoka has spent three years in Houston without getting the Rockets through the opening round of the postseason.
Johnson’s spot on the list is a little different, but the Thunder still sit at the center of it. He just guided San Antonio to the NBA Finals in his first year after taking over as interim coach for the 2024-25 season, yet ESPN still pointed to him as a name to watch. The reason is simple: the excuses are thinning out.
The Spurs now have what the piece describes as arguably the best young core in the league, with Victor Wembanyama, a top-three player in the world, leading the way. Most of that group also has Finals experience now. But Johnson’s handling of the title round came under fire, especially his rotation choices against the New York Knicks, when San Antonio kept coughing up late leads and he stuck with the same starting five throughout.
That kind of lineup management could face even sharper scrutiny if the Spurs can’t turn all that talent into another run. And if that run ends in the Western Conference Finals against Oklahoma City, the Thunder could end up shaping more than just the championship race.
That’s the bigger picture here. If any of these teams fall short, the fallout may not stop at the standings or the playoff bracket. It could reach the head coach, too.
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For Oklahoma City, the appeal goes beyond height and draft pedigree. Daigneault pointed to Maras conditioning, defensive presence, mobility, rolling ability and hands as the traits that have made his camp impact harder to ignore, especially for a team that values versatility from its bigs. The real test comes soon enough, with the Thunder set to open preseason play against the New Orleans Pelicans in Tulsa, where Mara will get another chance to show how quickly he can fit into the picture. [Read more 🡒]