The Oklahoma City Thunder already produced one of the most dominant seasons in NBA history during their 2025 championship run, but general manager Sam Presti believes the franchise has yet to reach its ultimate peak.
Oklahoma City will enter the 2026-27 season looking to return to the NBA Finals after its title defense ended with a heartbreaking Game 7 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals. Despite the Thunder's success over the past two seasons, Presti believes an even stronger version of the franchise remains ahead.
“The best Thunder team of all time is out there somewhere in our future,” Presti said, according to Clemente Almanza of OKC Thunder Wire on Thursday via X, formerly known as Twitter.
That represents a lofty standard considering what Oklahoma City accomplished during its championship season.
Led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, the Thunder finished the 2024-25 regular season with a 12.8 net rating. According to StatMuse, that was the second-highest single-season net rating in NBA history.
Only Michael Jordan's 1995-96 Chicago Bulls finished higher, posting a 13.4 net rating while going 72-10 and eventually winning the NBA championship.
Oklahoma City's dominance was not limited to one season, either. The Thunder followed their championship campaign with an 11.1 net rating in 2025-26, which ranks eighth all time. That placed them just behind the 2007-08 Boston Celtics, who recorded an 11.2 net rating during their championship season.
Sam Presti sees even greater heights for Thunder
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Presti's prediction comes as Oklahoma City continues building around Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams and Holmgren, a trio that has already helped transform the Thunder into a perennial championship contender.
The Thunder's success over the past two seasons has been particularly notable because of the age of their core. Oklahoma City has paired its stars with a deep roster and a substantial collection of future draft assets, giving the organization multiple avenues to continue reshaping the team.
However, the roster has already undergone significant changes following consecutive deep postseason runs. Oklahoma City traded several members of its championship rotation during the offseason, including Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe, while navigating the financial realities created by major long-term contracts for its stars.
Those departures mean the next version of the Thunder will not look exactly like the group that posted one of the greatest statistical regular seasons in league history.
Still, Presti believes Oklahoma City's best basketball remains ahead. After a championship and another Western Conference Finals appearance, the standard for surpassing the Thunder's recent accomplishments is already historically high.