OKC Thunder Picked by Some League Executives to Win 2024-25 NBA Finals

The Oklahoma City Thunder have been picked by some NBA executives to win the 2024-25 NBA Finals, splitting some of the votes with the Boston Celtics.

Oct 27, 2022; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder Mascot, Rumble The Bison, waves a giant flag at the beginning of the fourth quarter against the LA Clippers at Paycom Center. Oklahoma City won 118-110. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports / Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports

The Oklahoma City Thunder have been projected by nearly every pundit and even Vegas to win the Western Conference and be serious contenders during the 2024-25 season. As we inch closer to the start of the NBA season, more predictions will flood in, even from within the walls of the association.

ESPN released its annual General Manager Survey this week which polled top decision makers on who would win the NBA Finals, which was largely comprised of the Boston Celtics (8) and Oklahoma City Thunder (7) taking home the votes.

"Boston and OKC dominate once again in the vote for the league's next champion, with the panel giving a slight edge to the Celtics capturing banner No. 19 over the Thunder breaking through for their first," Bontemps explains.

The Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Timberwolves all garnered one vote a piece. Only the Thunder and Celtics saw multiple executives cast their vote for them to hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy.

Oklahoma City rightfully only lags behind the Boston Celtics by one vote after a stellar offseason, which included netting the Thunder Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein to fully address the team's two biggest weaknesses from a year ago.

Blending those two into the existing core that includes budding stars Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams while MVP runner-up Shai Gilgeous-Alexander drives the bus alongside a high-level rotation engineered by coach of the year Mark Daigneault.

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