Analyzing OKC Thunder’s Competition in the Northwest Division

Since the Thunder’s first season in Oklahoma City, the franchise has owned the Northwest Division. It’s not easy to start from the studs and build a well-oiled machine, but that’s exactly what Sam Presti and Oklahoma City did — twice, now, to be exact.

The Thunder’s competition over the years has been stiff, too. Of course, the Nuggets were a force early on, and even more of a force today. Portland has had some terrific teams led by Damian Lillard and a rock solid supporting cast. Utah hasn’t been up to par over the last few years, but dominant regular seasons were a regular occurrence during Oklahoma City’s post-Kevin Durant era. And recently, Minnesota has emerged as an elite team with rising young talent. 

All things considered, moving a franchise to a brand new city and going through a full-on rebuild in 15 years of the franchise’s existence, dominating the division is an unbelievable feat. Since 2008-09, Oklahoma City has claimed seven division titles — good for the most of the five teams. Denver is following behind at five titles, and Utah has claimed three. 

Over the last two seasons, it has been all Oklahoma City, though. During the 2023-24 season, the division title came right down to the wire, and it was widely publicized — because it was also the Western Conference crown. One single game separated Oklahoma City, Denver, and Minnesota, and OKC and Denver tied with the top record. The Thunder secured the tiebreaker and the No. 1 seed, but the division was loaded with three powerhouses. This past season, Oklahoma City simply ran away with it — and ran away from the rest of the league too. The Nuggets finished second in the division, and 18.0 whole games behind the Thunder. 

There are storylines centered around the Thunder repeating and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander going back-to-back for the MVP award — and rightfully so. But one of the buried storylines is centered around the Northwest Division. During a time where this division is ultra talented and competitive, could Oklahoma City really go back-to-back-to-back?

It seems to be a safe bet, as Oklahoma City is the favorite to repeat as champions. But make no mistake, if the Thunder misses out on a division three-peat, there’s a rock solid chance that Minnesota or Denver is the top seed in the West. All three teams are supposed to be contenders next season, which makes the race for the division that much more interesting.

Oklahoma City ran into both Denver and Minnesota in the postseason, and while Denver put up a better fight, both teams possess different strengths that can cause issues for the Thunder. As things stand heading into a new season, though, the Thunder should be the favorites to win another division title — which is quite the impressive accomplishment.

Since the division was created in 2004, only one team has won three or more Northwest Division titles in a row — the Oklahoma City Thunder. From 2010-2014, the Thunder won four straight division championships. And now, with the continuity and youth across the roster, it feels like an eerily similar run is on the horizon. Oklahoma City already has two in a row under its belt, and a third one seems more than plausible this season.