There hasn’t been a back-to-back NBA champion since the Golden State Warriors fashioned a repeat in 2017-18. And seven different teams won the title since Toronto started the trend in 2019. This season, defending champion Oklahoma City posted the league’s best record, 64-18 and was first to reach the second round of the playoffs, blanking Phoenix. Next to advance was San Antonio, holder of the second best record, as the Spurs ousted Portland in five.
The betting is OKC will become the first repeat champion in eight years and break the streak of seven different franchises to claim the Larry O’Brien trophy. In the regular season, six OKC players averaged in double figure points – Shai Gilgeous Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Ajay Mitchell, Isaiah Joe and Jared McCain. Other major contributors were Lu Dort, Isaiah Hartenstein, Aaron Wiggins, Cason Wallace, Jaylin Williams and Alex Caruso. Of those 12, only McCain wasn’t on the title squad last season as he came aboard via a trade last February.
SGA, 27, is one of three MVP finalists with Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama the others. If SGA is named, he’ll be the first repeat MVP since Jokic in 2021-22. OKC’s average age is 25 with Caruso and Kenrich Williams the oldest at 31. Coach Mark Daigneault has molded the Thunder into a deadly two-way machine, ranking No. 5 in offense and No. 1 in field goal percentage allowed. It makes a big difference when 7-foot Hartenstein and 7-1 Holmgren are on the floor in the starting unit. Dort is a tough on-ball defender while Jalen Williams is often compared to Pippen as SGA is to Jordan. Another crack stopper is Caruso whose in-your-face defense has even victimized Jokic. The mix of characters is a coach’s dream and the perfect formula for a championship team.
Lindy’s Sports and Athlon Sports picked OKC to repeat. The NBA Book said “with the array of resources at their disposal, the Thunder look very much the team to beat … with a high level of buy-in from his players, Daigneault has a shot at constructing a dynasty.”
In the way of OKC’s march to the throne is San Antonio. They’ll face off in the Western finals assuming safe passage from the second round. The Spurs had missed the last six playoffs after a run of 22 straight years, winning five titles. Coach Gregg Popovich retired and long-time assistant Mitch Johnson, whose father JJ was on the Seattle 1979 championship squad, took over. From 34-48 last campaign, Johnson led San Antonio to 62-20 with Wemby only on his third season. The Spurs are No. 3 in offense, No. 2 in rebounding and No. 6 in field goal percentage. Their average age is 26.8 and like OKC, San Antonio has depth with a strong support cast. De’Aaron Fox, Devin Vassell, Stephon Castle, Julian Champagnie, Sixth Man of the Year Keldon Johnson, Fil-Am Dylan Harper and 13-year vet Harrison Barnes form a steady backup crew for Wemby. The key is for Wemby to stay healthy. It’s likely if OKC and San Antonio meet in the Western finals, the winner will go all the way to the top.