Oklahoma City enters next season with real title expectations, but the Thunder don’t get to coast on that status. They already know the gap between being one of the league’s best and finishing the job is small, and last year’s loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals made that clear.
For all the talent on the roster, there are still a few pressure points that have to be cleaned up. The biggest one starts on the glass.
Oklahoma City was one of the worst offensive rebounding teams in the league last season, pulling down just 9.6 per game. On the other end, opponents grabbed 11.9 offensive boards a night against them.
That minus-2.3 differential ranked the Thunder dead last in the league, and it’s the kind of issue that can’t survive another season if this group wants to take the next step.
Isaiah Hartenstein has done what he can, but the burden can’t fall on him alone. Chet Holmgren and Jaylin Williams need to help, and rookie Aday Mara could become a real factor in the paint this season. If that happens, this weakness has a chance to shift in the other direction.
Another problem comes from the same style that makes Oklahoma City so disruptive. The Thunder play with aggression, and that pressure creates turnovers at a rate that ranks among the league’s best.
But there’s a tradeoff. That same aggressiveness can leave them out of position, and when that happens, opponents are quick to launch from deep.
That showed up in a big way last season. Oklahoma City gave up the third-most made three-pointers per game at 14.3, and the sheer volume of attempts put the Thunder in constant catch-up mode.
That can drag a team into ugly nights, especially when the shots aren’t falling. If OKC can cut down those open looks and force teams into its style of play, it won’t have to live so dangerously when the three-point shot goes cold.
There’s also a more specific lesson from the conference finals: the Thunder can’t let one defender change who they are. Against Spurs big Victor Wembanyama, they were hesitant to attack early, and that caution hurt them until they finally started to go at him.
Jared McCain gave them an example by challenging the big man a few times in the series and showing that scoring there was possible. Once that happened, the rest of the Thunder followed suit and began testing him more.
Going forward, Oklahoma City can’t back off from defenders like that. It has to keep playing its own game, not shrink from it.
In Other News...
Kevin Durants Westbrook Reaction Will Hit Thunder Fans Hard
Russell Westbrooks retirement after 18 NBA seasons closed the book on one of the leagues most influential careers, and for Thunder fans it also reopened memories of the Oklahoma City core that once carried the franchise to the center of the basketball conversation. A former MVP and perennial All-Star, Westbrook changed the way the game viewed the triple-double and spent years as the relentless engine of a Thunder era defined by speed, force and unwavering competitiveness.
Kevin Durants reaction only adds another layer to that history. As Westbrooks former teammate in Oklahoma City, Durant praised his work ethic and acknowledged the bond they built while leading the Thunder, but he also made clear he believed Westbrook still had something left in the tank before choosing to walk away. For a fan base that watched both stars shape the franchises rise, hearing Durant talk about Westbrook this way will land with extra weight. [Read more 🡒]
Jalen Williams Has One Big Job In OKCs Title Push
Jalen Williams 2025-26 season never really got the chance to settle into rhythm. Injuries limited him to 33 games, and his scoring dipped to its lowest level since his rookie year, a steep step back for a player the Thunder have counted on as part of their title core. The issues were more than just a cold shooting stretch, too, as the missed time and physical setbacks made it hard for him to look like the same two-way force Oklahoma City had leaned on.
The encouraging part for the Thunder is that Williams is expected to come back closer to form in 2026-27, with an offseason focus on getting his body and game right again. He has also been working with the trainer who helps guide Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a sign that Oklahoma City is treating his recovery and next step with real intent. For a team pushing toward another championship run, Williams does not need to become a different player. He just needs to become himself again. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder Title Defense Could Come Down To One Lineup Decision
The Thunder go into 2026-27 in the rare place of trying to defend a title while still being treated like a co-favorite, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams all back at the center of it. Around that core, though, coach Mark Daigneault is staring at a roster puzzle that feels bigger than most teams depth-chart debates because the offseason trades changed the shape of the group and left Oklahoma City weighing how best to cover every phase of a game.
The biggest question may not be who starts so much as how the Thunder want to finish and where the shooting comes from when the lineup tightens. Daigneault has options with the returning pieces and the newcomers, but the choices will say a lot about whether Oklahoma City wants maximum spacing, more defense or simply the best blend of trust and versatility when the games get louder in the spring. [Read more 🡒]