The Thunder won the NBA title on June 22. Nine days later, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the league’s MVP, agreed to a four-year, $285 million contract extension. Chet Holmgren signed a max extension eight days after that. A day later, Jalen Williams did the same.
A month removed from Oklahoma City’s Game 7, championship-clinching win against Indiana — and with the rapid succession of the draft, free agency and summer league behind us — things have just now begun to slow down.
What was a blur is finally coming into focus: The Thunder just enjoyed the best 30-day stretch in franchise history.
Obviously. Winning an NBA title is kind of a big deal. The ultimate prize. But that was just the beginning. A second parade should have been thrown after the Big Three of SGA, J-Dub and Chet re-upped. Those extensions alone would have made this summer a win for the Thunder even if it hadn’t won. Instead, they felt like neatly wrapped presents in which everyone knew what was inside. You appreciate them just the same, but you have to feign excitement upon the reveal.
But don’t get spoiled, Thunder fans. This is Oklahoma City, after all. We know what it looks like when an MVP leaves town. When the team and one of its young stars can’t agree on a contract.
This time, and granted, a championship expedites the process, there was no drama.
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Gilgeous-Alexander signed a deal that will carry him through 2030-31, his age-32 season. Williams and Holmgren are also locked up through the 2030-31 season — keeping them in Oklahoma City through their late 20s.
This coming season, the Thunder’s Big Three will make a combined $58.6 million. J-Dub and Chet will be playing in the last year of their rookie deals, and SGA has two more seasons before his massive extension kicks in. Because of that, oddly enough, Williams and Holmgren will have a higher salary ($41.4 million) in the 2026-27 season than will SGA ($40.8 million).
SGA’s salary will soar to $60.8 million in 2027-28, the first year of the extension he just signed. By 2030-31, Gilgeous-Alexander will be making $75.4 million, and Holmgren and Williams — not accounting for any contract kickers — will both be at a projected $54.6 million.
So the same Big Three that will make a combined $58.6 million next season will rake in upwards of $185 million six years from now.
Yes, doling out nearly $800 million worth of contracts to three players over a nine-day span is a lot of money. No, you shouldn’t worry about it. Not now at least.
The Thunder’s seven-man ownership group, led by chairman Clay Bennett, went deep into the luxury tax during the Paul George days. In 2017-18 and 2018-19, OKC had the third-highest payroll in the league. Even in 2019-20, the Chris Paul season, OKC ranked fourth in payroll.
Since then, though, the Thunder’s payroll has ranked 29th, 30th, 13th, 20th and 26th, according to spotrac.com. Last season, only the Spurs, Jazz, Magic and Pistons had a lower payroll than the Thunder. A 19-win Charlotte team cost more than a 68-win Thunder team that won the championship.
As things stand, the Thunder will enter the 2025-26 season with the 21st highest payroll in the league — the fifth time in the last six seasons in which the Thunder will have a bottom-10 payroll.
Remember Sam Presti’s three “R” words from his July 2019 op-ed in The Oklahoman?
“It will take us time, now, to reposition, replenish and then ultimately rebuild our team,” Presti wrote.
The replenish part was twofold. Presti loaded up on draft picks, of which the Thunder is still reaping the benefits. OKC owns 13 first-round picks over the next seven years. Draft picks turn into controllable players on relatively cheap, rookie-scale deals. Players who can help plug the gaps when the Thunder inevitably has to part with veteran rotation players it will no longer be able to afford.
“Replenish” also had to do with the Thunder’s financial situation. Thunder ownership needed to recoup some cash after the Westbrook-George run that wasn’t. After making more money during the rebuild than in the contending years, another windfall awaits Thunder ownership when the new downtown arena opens ahead of the 2028-29 season.
The city of Oklahoma City, and not the Thunder, will own the building, but the new arena is expected to drive more revenue. Thunder ownership committed $50 million (5%) to the $1 billion, mostly taxpayer-funded project. Oklahoma City residents voted overwhelmingly, 71% to 29%, in support of the arena proposal.
With taxpayers footing the bulk of the arena bill, it should give the Thunder’s ownership group more flexibility to keep the team intact as the cost skyrockets under the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement. That’s the expectation, at least.
Keeping championship-level teams intact is something this new CBA is designed to prevent. The Thunder, though, is best positioned to overcome the apron hurdles and contend for the next half-decade or so.
For now, those are worries for another day as the summer of Thunder rolls on.
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com. Support Joe’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.