The Oklahoma City Thunder ran through the league to open the season, starting the year with a franchise-best eight straight victories and their second straight year beginning 7-0. During that dominant stretch, OKC was an absolute force, ranking inside the top five in both points and field goals made. Defensively, they were just as impressive, finishing first in defensive rebounds and second in steals. They also posted the fourth-best offensive rating and the top defensive rating in the league, clearly overwhelming opponents on both ends of the floor.
Why the Thunder Are the Most Complete Team in the NBA Right Now
Their run was briefly stopped by a tough Blazers squad, but OKC roared back stronger, dismantling their next four opponents. They crushed the Kings by 31, built 30-point leads against both the Warriors and Lakers, and came back from 19 down against the Grizzlies. Their defense hit an entirely new level as well. They held all four teams to 102 points or fewer, an impressive jump from their league-best defensive average of 107. The Warriors, who are a top-four team in three-pointers made, and the Grizzlies were both forced into their second-lowest scoring games of the season, while the Lakers were completely stunned, failing to reach 100 points for the first time this year.
Individually, OKC shut down the league’s brightest stars. Reaves, who entered the game averaging 31.8 points, and Doncic, putting up 37.1 per night, were bottled up to just 32 combined points on 1-for-12 shooting from deep. Steph Curry was also held to a season-low in both points and threes, while Morant has yet to figure the Thunder out, only scoring 11.
Even more impressive is the fact that they’ve kept this momentum going in the face of adversity. Jalen Williams has yet to make his season debut with a wrist issue. Dort, their defensive stopper, has already missed five contests. Holmgren, Carus,o and Wiggins have each been out for four games. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, meanwhile, didn’t even need to play in the fourth quarter in six games.
With this level of play, OKC—one of the league’s youngest teams—is charging toward a 70-win season, a feat only the 1996 Bulls and the 2016 Warriors have ever accomplished.
