The Oklahoma City Thunder head toward the 2026-27 season with the kind of luxury most teams only dream about: they’re being mentioned as a co-title favorite with the San Antonio Spurs, even after spending the summer trimming depth. The roster looks a little different now, but the core still gives Oklahoma City a scary ceiling.
At the top of everything are Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams. Gilgeous-Alexander is the two-time MVP winner, while Holmgren and Williams are both All-NBA members. Together, they give the Thunder one of the league’s best trios, and with one NBA championship already in the bank, the mission is obvious: chase another.
With that in mind, Thunder Wire broke down several lineup looks Mark Daigneault could lean on during the 2026-27 regular season.
The most straightforward group is the starting five: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. That’s basically the Thunder’s familiar setup with one notable change.
Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren and Williams remain the pillars, and Hartenstein should stay in the first unit after Oklahoma City made it a priority to keep him. Wallace is the new piece here, sliding in for Lu Dort and expected to handle the top perimeter-defender role while also getting more room to work on offense.
The closing group is a little more intriguing. The Thunder’s crunch-time lineup in this look is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Ajay Mitchell, Alex Caruso, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren.
Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren and Williams are the constants, but the final two spots can shift from night to night. Mitchell has become one of OKC’s best self-created scorers, and the team needs that shot-making.
Caruso brings the kind of disruptive impact that can tilt a game the moment he checks in, which is why he belongs in the conversation every time the Thunder are trying to finish one off.
There’s also a shooting-heavy option built around replacing what was lost when Isaiah Joe left. In this version, the lineup is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jared McCain, Cason Wallace, Jaylin Williams and Chet Holmgren.
The idea is simple: put enough shooting around Gilgeous-Alexander to keep the floor spaced and let the kick-out game do its work. Wallace and Williams both fit that mold as role players who can operate off the catch and, at times, make something happen on their own.
Depth is where the Thunder are a little more exposed after the summer changes. Their all-bench group in this breakdown is Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain, Alex Caruso, Kenrich Williams and Jaylin Williams.
Oklahoma City’s cost-cutting moves saved money, but they also thinned out the back end of the roster. That means more responsibility for the players still standing.
Mitchell and McCain are both candidates for bigger roles, and both could break out. Mitchell’s health has been the main issue through two years, while the others in this group are more defined in what they bring.
If size is the issue, the Thunder can still go big with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Jaylin Williams, Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. Gilgeous-Alexander is the shortest player in that lineup at 6-foot-6, which says plenty about how much value he brings no matter the configuration.
Holmgren is the tallest at 7-foot-1. The Holmgren-Hartenstein pairing has already been a staple over the past two years, and it’s helped produce one NBA championship and nearly another.
In a league loaded with centers, Oklahoma City’s size has mattered, and its league-best defense over the last two seasons backs that up.
On the flip side, the Thunder can also lean small with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Ajay Mitchell, Cason Wallace, Alex Caruso and Jalen Williams. That group keeps the pace up and the floor open without giving away too much on defense.
Williams has logged center minutes before, and his wingspan makes him a tricky defender in the middle. Caruso can scale up as well, including against Nikola Jokic.
Even in a smaller look, Oklahoma City can keep its defensive edge while still playing fast and spacing the floor.
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The timing makes the rumor more interesting, because fans have long treated City Edition returns like a wish list item from year to year. The Thunder are expected to wear the look multiple times during that season, with the 2026 NBA Cup potentially offering a spotlight for it at home, and it is the kind of detail that will keep the debate going over which alternate identity should have been the one to resurface. [Read more 🡒]