OKC 2023-24 Season Preview

After surpassing expectations during the 2022-23 season, OKC fans should be very excited this upcoming season about their young roster.

The Oklahoma City Thunder surprised just about the entire basketball world with their performance this past season, making the postseason with one of the youngest teams in NBA history. With all of OKC's main core returning, the Thunder appear poised to breakout this upcoming season.

Last year, Oklahoma City went 40-42, taking down the Pelicans in the opening round of the NBA Play-In before falling to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Coming into the season, OKC was projected to win only around 20-25 games.

The Star

The main catalyst for OKC's improvement this past season was the play of First Team All-NBA guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. SGA has improved every year in his young NBA career thus far. This past year was no exception, as he averaged a career-high 31.4 PPG, while shooting a career best 51% from the field.

Rising Stars:

SGA was not the only surprise nationally for the Thunder last season, as rookie wing Jalen Williams was the runner-up for Rookie of the Year and made the All-Rookie First Team. Josh Giddey made strides throughout the season to help push Oklahoma City over the top whenever the team needed it.

The X-Factor:

Once deemed as the unicorn and potential future of the NBA, Chet Holmgren is the x-factor that will ultimately decide the ceiling of this team in the future. If Chet Holmgren’s rim protection can translate to the NBA, he will undoubtedly be the one who anchors and leads this team on defense, which it needs. His floor spacing and vertically as a lob and roll threat will do nothing but help guys like SGA, Josh Giddey, and Jalen Williams play even more efficiently than they do now. If injuries don’t become a consistent concern, Chet Holmgren will be one of the main reasons why this team will be championship contenders in the future.

Key Additions:

OKC will be adding the 2022 #2 pick in Chet Holmgren who will fill a much needed void at the big man position, the two-time Euro League MVP in Vasilije Micic who will provide veteran guard play off the bench, and the #10 pick from this year's draft in Cason Wallace who will provide steadiness offensively and high level defense off the bench at the guard position. If SGA, Jalen Williams, and Josh Giddey continue to improve and play at a high level when Kenrich Williams and Chet Holmgren return this season, OKC will have an even better record at the end 2023-24. By adding Chet Holmgren, Kenrich Williams, Vasilije Micic, and Cason Wallace the Oklahoma City should be in an even better spot than it is following this upcoming season.

Roster:

Guards: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (6'6), Josh Giddey (6'8), Lu Dort (6'3), Vasilije Micic (6'5), Cason Wallace (6'4), Isaiah Joe (6'4), Tre Mann (6'3).

Wings: Jalen Williams (6'6), Ousmane Dieng (6'10), Aaron Wiggins (6'6)

Forwards: Kenrich Williams (6'6), Aleksej Pokusevski (7'0), Davis Bertans (6'10).

Bigs: Chet Holmgren (7'1), Jaylin Williams (6'10).

Two-Way Contracts: Keyontae Johnson (6'5), Lindy Waters (6'5), Olivier Sarr (6'11).

Prediction: That being said, it is likely that OKC wins between 42-48 games in the upcoming season (if healthy), increasing their win totals from a season ago. The floor for OKC is being a Play-In team. The ceiling for OKC is a fifth/sixth seed in the Playoffs.