Former All-Star Ranks Current OKC Thunder Higher Than 2012 Team

Three-time All-Star Gilbert Arenas gave the Oklahoma City Thunder high priase on a recent episode of the Gil's Arena show.

December 22, 2009; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas (0) during the game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-Imagn Images / James Lang-Imagn Images

After becoming the first team in NBA history to start the regular season with a 7-0 record and defeat its opponents by double-digit points, the Oklahoma City Thunder has understandably received lots of praise coming its way.

Its hot start got cut short against the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night, now tied with the Phoenix Suns as the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. Behind the trio of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams, alongside a rotation full of quality role players, the Thunder is primed to compete for a championship once the playoffs roll around.

With that, former All-Star Gilbert Arenas gave Oklahoma City high praise on a recent episode of the the Gil's Arena Show, calling it better than the 2012 team that made the finals behind Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden.

“This is a better team than the 2012 team... If [The Thunder] don't win a championship in the next six years, that’s a problem," Arenas said.

Gilbert Arenas says the current OKC team is better than the 2012 OKC team with KD, Russ, and Harden.

“This is a better team than the 2012 team... If [The Thunder] don't win a championship in the next 6 years, that’s a problem.”

(🎥 @GilsArenaShow )

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Putting this year's Thunder squad over a team led by three future Hall of Famers brings unmeasurably high expectations, but if it continues to go on the trajectory it's currently on, making the finals is far from unrealistic. If anything, it's the favorite in the West.

Not getting a championship in the next six years would be a disappointment for Oklahoma City, considering all of the talent it currently has at its disposal. It failed to win one when it had Durant and Westbrook throughout the early 2010s, nor when it replaced Durant with Paul George.

No championship with Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren? Equally as disappointing for the franchise.

Whether or not this year's Thunder team surpasses 2012 won't be figured out until the playoffs, but on paper, it has the capability to go as far in the playofffs as it did 12 years ago.

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