Inside The Thunder

OKC Thunder Pegged as Title Contenders By League Executives

The Oklahoma City Thunder are primed to compete for an NBA championship according to NBA General Managers in the latest NBA GM Survey.

Rylan Stiles

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is pictured during the Thunder media day at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is pictured during the Thunder media day at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. / NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Expectations are sky high for the Oklahoma City Thunder entering the 2024-25 NBA season and the hype train isn’t slowing down as we hurl toward the season opener. 

On Tuesday, the NBA unveiled their annual NBA General Manager survey where league exclusives anonymously vote on a wide range of topics regarding the association from who will win the title to who will be the best rookie in five years. 

Oklahoma City was littered throughout the survey, including at the top where the league General Managers pegged them as having the second best chance to win the NBA Title. 

While the Bostons Celtics garnered 83 percent of the vote to repeat as Champions, 13 percent of league decision makers cast their vote for the OKC Thunder landing them second behind the Green and White and slotting in ahead of the reigning Western Conference Champion Dallas Mavericks making up just three percent of the vote. Those were the only three teams who were tabbed as champions for the 2024-25 season. A year ago, the Denver Nuggets and Boston Celtics were tied at the top with 33 percent of the vote before Boston went on to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy. 

After getting a glimpse at the Thunder on Monday in their preseason opener, even while missing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort, the team seemed prime to live up to the lofty expectations cast before them.

The Oklahoma City Thunder gave the deepest roster in the NBA, one of the best bench bosses in the sport, and a superstar leading the way. 

If rising stars Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams can officially make the leap as the team’s second and third scoring options in a playoff setting, then the Thunder will be the team to beat in the association even as the Celtics run back their star studded roster from a year ago. 

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Rylan Stiles
RYLAN STILES

Rylan Stiles is a credentialed media member covering the Oklahoma City Thunder. He hosts the Locked On Thunder Podcast, and is Lead Beat Writer for Inside the Thunder. Rylan is also an award-winning play-by-play broadcaster for the Oklahoma Sports Network. 

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