Starting Lineup Squeeze Gives OKC Thunder Built-In 6MOY Candidate

The Thunder will have one of their best players coming off the bench this season.

Oct 9, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) gestures after a play against the Houston Rockets during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City enters the 2024-25 season as a championship favorite, and its immense talent could lead to some awards as well.

The Thunder won 57 games last season and rose to the No. 1 seed in the West, but made a couple of significant offseason moves. They traded Josh Giddey for Alex Caruso and signed Isaiah Hartenstein to a hefty three-year deal.

With the Thunder’s big three of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren making up 60% of the starting lineup, there are only two spots remaining for three deserving candidates. Lu Dort is a likely starter but not guaranteed to keep that spot, especially if Caruso and Hartenstein show their value early in the season.

With a high-level starter set to be squeezed out of the starting five, Oklahoma City should have one of the top candidates for Sixth Man of the Year. After finishing first in the West last season, the Thunder are projected to take home the conference’s top seed again and perhaps compete for the league’s best record.

That bodes well for a Thunder player to potentially bring home the John Havlicek Trophy, as the past five winners have been on top 3 seeds. Last season, Naz Reid won the award while averaging 13.5 points per game, the lowest scoring average for a winner since Aaron McKie in 2000-01. 

Typically, the Sixth Man of the Year averages between 15 and 20 points. While the Thunder’s three potential candidates could near that mark, finding enough shots to get there could be an issue.

The Thunder’s depth doesn’t end at the sixth man, with Mark Daigneault easily able to play 10+ players without a problem on any given night. The Thunder also seem interested in increasing the usage of Williams and Holmgren. With either one of those two or Gilgeous-Alexander likely on the floor at any given time, the Thunder’s sixth man won’t exactly be leading the second unit’s attack.

Still, 60 wins could be within reach for the Thunder, and with six starting-caliber players, they are likely to have someone in the mix for Sixth Man of the Year.

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