OKC Thunder Entering New Chapter in 2025-26 Season

The 2025 NBA Finals marked the end of a 17-year journey for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Assortments of teams centered around Kevin Durant and/or Russell Westbrook came so close to the grand prize, but it wasn't until a historic rebuild shifted the tide to capturing its first-ever championship.

The reigning MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was the key to everything. The guard developed into a superstar since being a major piece of the Paul George trade in 2019, already establishing himself as debatably the greatest player in Thunder history. Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren are his two co-stars, equally playing a pivotal role during the Finals run.

This accomplishment came far quicker than most would've expected. The core is incredibly young — Gilgeous-Alexander is just 27 years old, while Williams and Holmgren are still under 25. None of the three players, nor the rest of the roster, are going anywhere from last year. General manager Sam Presti has laid out a plan to be able to retain his stars while keeping strong role players around them.

Despite the group not looking much different ahead of the 2024-25 season, it really is the mark of a new era for Oklahoma City. The first chapter was the long search for a championship and establishment of the franchise, but the outlook is far different for the franchise. Now, the Thunder is looking to build itself as one of the NBA's all-time greatest dynasties.

That's a tall order to fill, but it doesn't seem impossible for Oklahoma City to do with the immense talent they have down the rotation. Gilgeous-Alexander is just the level of leader and scorer to be the driving force of that, and this is far from the peak for both Williams and Holmgren. The 2024-25 team could be the baseline for what the Thunder ultimately become — and that's a scary possibility for the rest of the league.

Oklahoma City has new expectations and goals to reach. Just getting to the Finals isn't going to be the presumption moving forward; the presumption is to win the whole thing. As it happens with other iconic franchises across sports, anything less than greatness is deemed a disappointment.

It might take another championship or two to really get to that level, but the Thunder is on track to get there with the core it has. Along with a $1 billion stadium coming to Oklahoma City in the near future, it's clear the franchise isn't just one of the small markets that doesn't get attention from the national media.

The Thunder might just run the NBA for the next several years.