It goes without saying that the Oklahoma City Thunder have a ton of expectations heading into this year. Coming off an impressive 2023/24 season as the youngest one seed in NBA history will do that to a team, and as the Thunder improved by adding key pieces to fill their shortcomings, many experts believe this is OKC's year.
NBA champion with the 2008 Boston Celtics and former center for the Thunder Kendrick Perkins spoke on 'NBA on ESPN' where he gave his lofty expectations for the franchise and didn’t hold back:
"This is your year to get to the NBA Finals. I don't want to hear nothing else." 😳
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) October 3, 2024
—@KendrickPerkins on his expectations for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder this season 👀 pic.twitter.com/J17y3p536O
If the quote "the expectation [for the Thunder] is to get it done" doesn't sum up the weight sitting on OKC's shoulders, not much else will.
Perkins would go on to describe how the Thunder are the only team in the Western Conference that checks all the boxes.
From an MVP caliber player in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as well as rising-stars Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams to the key additions of Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso, along with the elite shooting of Isaiah Joe, makes for a dangerous team.
While the Thunder are seen as favorites on paper to win it all out West, the team is still very young. Much of the roster has only a few playoff series under their belt, and with all the media noise, adds that much more pressure. Yet there is no other team that is as unified as the Thunder, and as long as they take it one game at a time and improve each day, the future will be bright for this squad.
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