As the NBA calendar inches toward August, the offseason grind starts to matter even more. The games are gone, the travel is gone, and that’s when players can actually slow down and work on the parts of their game that don’t always get attention during the season.
That’s where the Oklahoma City Thunder enter the picture. After finishing five wins short of their back-to-back ambitions, they’re now in the stage where the focus shifts from what went wrong in the playoffs to what comes next. And for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams, the next step has already started: getting on the same page again this summer.
The two have been working out together, with social media posts showing them spending time alongside Gilgeous-Alexander’s longtime trainer, Nem Ilic. Instagram recently gave the clearest look at the collaboration.
For Gilgeous-Alexander, the assignment stays the same. The 28-year-old has put together two straight MVP seasons and four consecutive 30-plus point campaigns, and Oklahoma City needs that level of production to stay in the championship conversation.
Williams’ summer carries a different kind of weight. He’s trying to bounce back after a season derailed by two wrist surgeries and four hamstring strains, a stretch that wiped out what should have been one of his prime years. The Thunder are betting that was a one-year blip.
Even with the setback, Oklahoma City still sits among the title favorites, along with the San Antonio Spurs. And if the Thunder are going to make good on those expectations, it starts with Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams carrying the load together.
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Chet Holmgren Now Holds The Key To OKCs Biggest Risk
The Thunder have already made their financial bet, moving Luguentz Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe in separate trades to clear the path for contract extensions for Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren. That leaves Oklahoma City leaning harder on younger pieces to absorb the lost minutes and production, with Cason Wallace and Ajay Mitchell expected to help replace Dorts edge on the perimeter while the team looks for shooting answers elsewhere.
Holmgren is the swing piece in all of it. His defense is already a foundation, but if Oklahoma City wants to stay in the championship tier once the roster gets thinner and Williams availability remains a variable, Holmgren has to grow into more than a complementary scorer. The Thunder can survive a lot with their depth and structure, but the margin gets tighter if their 7-footer does not take the offensive step that makes the whole construction hold together. [Read more 🡒]
Thunders 2024 Draft Suddenly Looks Brilliant And Unsettling At Once
The Thunders 2024 draft class has become one of those rare cases that looks sharper with time, even if the path to that conclusion has been messy. Oklahoma City spent the No. 12 pick on Nikola Topic, and his early pro story has been defined more by health setbacks and limited playing time than by any clean first impression, which has made the pick feel more complicated than the usual draft-night celebration or disappointment.
At the same time, the Thunder have found real value elsewhere in the class, with Ajay Mitchell and Jared McCain emerging as important offensive pieces. In a speculative redraft of the 2024 lottery, both have climbed into the top tier of the board, a reminder that Oklahoma Citys haul can be viewed as a major win overall even if the original headline pick still carries plenty of uncertainty. [Read more 🡒]