Do the OKC Thunder Have Enough Playoff Experience to Compete for a Title in 2024?

After being ousted from the 2024 NBA Playoffs by the Dallas Mavericks, Oklahoma City should be more prepared for the postseason next time around.

May 18, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) / Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

After winning 40 games during the 2022-23 season, the Oklahoma City Thunder surprised many NBA observers by taking another leap the next year.

OKC, who already seemed to be ahead of schedule, reeled off 57 wins in the regular season and earned the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference in 2023-24.

Yet, despite its regular season success, few analysts believed the Thunder would make a run through the Western Conference due to its youth and lack of experience in the playoffs. The doubts many people had about Mark Daigneault's team ended up being valid, as Oklahoma City fell to Luka Doncic and company in six games.

The Thunder's 2024 postseason run was the first taste of playoff action for players like Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Cason Wallace, Aaron Wiggins and Jaylin Williams. With their first playoff series in the rear view mirror now, the aforementioned prospects should be ready for their next postseason appearance.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort, on the other hand, both had playoff experience heading into the year.

Gilgeous-Alexander made the playoffs as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers during his rookie season in 2018-19 before going back to the postseason in 2019-20 after being traded to the Modern Frontier. As a rookie on the Thunder's 2020 squad that nearly took out James Harden and the Rockets, Dort logged a 30-point outing in game seven of the series.

With both players having been in big moments before and being a few years older than the rest of the team, Gilgeous-Alexander and Dort were able to perform more consistently against the Pelicans and Mavericks in the postseason this year.

Additionally, adding Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein over the offseason gives the Thunder two veteran players with valuable postseason experience. At just 25-years-old, Caruso played over 18 minutes per game on a Los Angeles Lakers squad that won the NBA title in 2020.

Since then, Caruso has developed into an even better player on offense while maintaining his status as a stout perimeter defender. Hartenstein, on the other hand, has played significant minutes in four playoff series over the past two seasons with the New York Knicks.

Heading into the 2024-25 season, players like Gilgeous-Alexander, Dort, Hartenstein and Caruso should have enough playoff experience to lead the younger players on the team through adversity.

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