If you want to argue that the National Basketball Association regular season is too long at 82 games, I would not aggressively disagree. For the teams that advance to the NBA Finals, the postseason is a two-month stress test.
I do not remember reading or hearing complaints from the greatest player of all time. In 10 of his Chicago Bulls seasons, Michael Jordan played in at least 80 regular-season games. During his final NBA season – at the age of 39, with the Washington Wizards – Jordan played in all 82 games.
‘Don’t ever forget this’: OKC Thunder celebrates NBA championship with raucous downtown parade
But if you’re one of those who expresses an opinion that the regular season is irrelevant, I would laugh at that and present the 2024-25 Oklahoma City Thunder as a perfect example of why the regular season does matter.
If a team has bad habits during the regular season, it’ll have bad habits in the playoffs.
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It made sense that such a young Thunder team would treat a regular season as a college team would – by really trying to win every night.
That approach sharpened OKC’s competitive edge and developed great habits (especially at the defensive end of the floor). As none of the Thunder starters was a weak link defensively, it set a great example for the entire roster and sent a message: If you want minutes, there cannot be fluctuations in effort. You’ve got to bring it every game.
Watch as OKC Thunder mascot Rumble the Bison arrives at the end of the parade route.
Long before the end of a remarkable regular season, the Thunder was the betting favorite to win the NBA championship – which happened on Sunday, in a Game 7 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
During Tuesday’s celebration event in downtown Oklahoma City, third-year Thunder forward Jaylin Williams (the former Arkansas Razorback Jaylin Williams) rocked the crowd during his moment on the microphone: “They said we were too young! They said Oklahoma shouldn’t have a team! But guess what? We’re the (bleeping) champs!”
The championship process really began in 2019, when general manager Sam Presti traded Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander along with draft picks, and dealt 2017 league MVP Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul and two first-round picks.
In 2021, Presti selected Josh Giddey with the sixth pick overall. A year ago, Giddey was sent to the Chicago Bulls in exchange for defensive ace Alex Caruso. What a score that turned out to be.
In 2022, Presti hit on three picks: Chet Holmgren at No. 2 overall, Jalen Williams at 12th overall and Jaylin Williams in the second round.
In 2024, an 18-year-old Serbian guard – Nikola Topic – was taken at 12th overall. The 6-foot-6 Topic sustained a knee injury a few weeks before draft, so he wasn’t active for any Thunder games this season. The Thunder expects him to provide real value in 2025-26.
OKC THUNDER
Pictured during a Jan. 5 victory over the Boston Celtics, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder were 29-1 against NBA Eastern Conference opponents during the regular season. Nate Billings, Associated Press
A very, very long Thunder season began on Oct. 24, with an impressive road win at Denver. Oklahoma City started 7-0. From Dec. 3 through Jan. 5, OKC was 15-0. When the Thunder defeated defending champion Boston on Jan. 5, the Oklahoma City record was 30-5.
The 2023-24 Thunder 57-25 and had become conditioned to winning, but the acquisitions of Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein made the Thunder a more complete team.
There was a strengthening of Oklahoma City’s resolve to win every game because it was a realistic quest. The Thunder was an amazing 29-1 against Eastern Conference opponents.
At Madison Square Garden on Jan. 10, the Thunder delivered a butt-kicking to a pretty good New York Knicks team. The halftime score was 70-43. OKC won 126-101 as SGA totaled 39 points and Isaiah Joe had the performance of a lifetime. On 8-of-11 shooting from 3-point range, Joe’s contribution off the bench amounted to 31 points.
Over four seasons, the Thunder organization evolved from 24 wins to 40 and then to 57 and then to this season’s 68-14 regular-season mark.
There was an improvement of 16 victories, followed by an improvement of 17, followed by an additional improvement of 11.
It’s been an incredible four-year progression, and we may never see anything quite like it again.
The Thunder’s regular-season momentum and good habits led to a Game 7 conquest of the Pacers.
OKC is at the pinnacle today because of the George, Westbrook and Giddey trades, because of smart drafting, because of a culture of development and defense, and because of Mark Daigneault’s coaching of the youngest NBA title team in 48 years.
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