That 17-year dream was reality at last.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The ambitions of Sam Presti<\/a>, materialized into so many eras and at least two contenders over the course of the Thunder<\/a>\u2019s existence. The coronation of an MVP in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a>, the vindication of young stars like Chet Holmgren<\/a> and Jalen Williams<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n They\u2019d been lauded as preseason contenders. But along the way, their greatness garnered asterisks.\u00a0<\/p>\n OKC\u2019s defense held all-time efficiency \u2014 but surely it couldn\u2019t replicate it in the playoffs with different officiating. Surely SGA\u2019s scoring would eventually slow. Surely Jalen Williams couldn\u2019t dissect postseason defenses. Surely OKC\u2019s depth would dry up against the playoff heat.\u00a0<\/p>\n Wrong.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Thunder<\/a> was never too inexperienced after all. It was who it thought it was.<\/p>\n Here are some more of the best moments from the Thunder’s run to the NBA title<\/a>:<\/p>\n Pre-order our new book on Thunder’s run to NBA title<\/a><\/p>\n More: OKC Thunder trades Dillon Jones, 2029 second-round pick to Washington Wizards<\/a><\/p>\n Thunder\u2019s championship parade\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s difficult to hide joy.<\/p>\n See Jaylin Williams\u2019 cheek bones, likely more sore than his body after cheesing through the Thunder\u2019s celebratory parade. See Jalen Williams, bubbly behind his newfound intrigue in alcohol. See Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who paraded through Oklahoma City\u2019s downtown shirtless, feeling the warmth of a king.\u00a0<\/p>\n They took shots. They brought joyous children to tears. They embraced fans galore. They hoisted that 30-pound piece of gold in a city that\u2019d long salivated over it.\u00a0<\/p>\n The buses, the chants, the crowd, the fiery speeches, the endless smiles. The sun beamed on a city that couldn\u2019t be told anything. OKC belonged.\u00a0<\/p>\n More: OKC Thunder injury update: Will Thomas Sorber, Brooks Barnhizer play in NBA Summer League?<\/a><\/p>\n SGA\u2019s first 50-point game\u00a0<\/p>\n If ever there were any remaining doubts about Shai Gilgeous-Alexander\u2019s scoring supremacy \u2014 the single-game heights he could reach, his ability to put up gaudy point totals \u2014 he stomped them out that night.\u00a0<\/p>\n This midrange-loving hitman crossed an illustrious feat off his list: dropping 50. On that January night versus the Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City needed every one of his 54 points.\u00a0<\/p>\n With each bucket down the stretch, the Paycom Center crowd seemingly hyperventilated. Not because the Jazz was actively pushing the Thunder to the brink, but because it wanted to see if SGA could check off his lone remaining box as Earth\u2019s most consistent scorer.\u00a0<\/p>\n He then proceeded to score at least 50 three more times in the next couple months.\u00a0<\/p>\n More: OKC Thunder unveils which assistants will coach NBA Summer League team<\/a><\/p>\n OKC routes Boston in January statement\u00a0<\/p>\n Entering the season, Boston and OKC were the respective favorites in each conference, and their first matchup in January had long been circled on calendars.\u00a0<\/p>\n The stage was set for what many considered a Finals preview. Kristaps Porzingis was back in the lineup, marking the Celtics\u2019 rotation complete. The Thunder had won 14 consecutive games. This was its biggest test to date.\u00a0<\/p>\n OKC\u2019s signature second half, button-pushing streak of terror was honed that night.\u00a0<\/p>\n It held Jaylen Brown scoreless in the second half. SGA pinned Jayson Tatum\u2019s shot on the glass, then lobbing it to Isaiah Hartenstein for an and-one that shattered eardrums.\u00a0<\/p>\n OKC told the world then that anyone could get it.\u00a0<\/p>\n More: What to know about OKC Thunder offseason: Draft picks, contracts after winning NBA title<\/a><\/p>\n Lu Dort\u2019s barrage of 3s the difference in Game 5 vs Denver\u00a0<\/p>\n All hail the moon ball, the deadliest tool in Big Game Lu Dort\u2019s weapon wheel.<\/p>\n It peaked \u2014 in height and magnitude \u2014 in Game 5 of the West semifinals, when Oklahoma City trailed entering the fourth quarter. For the couple months leading to that period, Dort\u2019s 3-point shooting had been shaky, particularly on the road. But if the moon was ever to shine, it was in that OKC sky.<\/p>\n He hit three 3s in the fourth alone, with back-to-back makes serving as a backbreaker in a quarter where the Thunder badly needed some semblance of offense.\u00a0<\/p>\n He was benched down the stretch of Game 4. Dort saved the Thunder\u2019s season in Game 5.\u00a0<\/p>\n More: Celebrate Thunder’s first NBA title with commemorative page prints, books, gear, keepsakes<\/a><\/p>\n Big Three outlasts Minnesota in Game 4 win\u00a0<\/p>\n Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and SGA had collective flashes during their first regular season together. They were robbed of more opportunities once Holmgren went down with a season-altering injury earlier this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n But never, never, had they synchronized quite like they did in Game 4 in Minnesota. Gilgeous-Alexander\u2019s shotmaking and touch. Williams\u2019 force and fire. Holmgren\u2019s denials at the basket and rim running.\u00a0<\/p>\n They morphed like Megazord that night. A three-headed snake that hissed at Minnesota\u2019s late-game confidence. The Timberwolves\u2019 shotmaking had been video-game-like leading into that fourth quarter.\u00a0<\/p>\n Holmgren erased significant shots. Williams played one of the greatest offensive games of his career. SGA did SGA things. They improbably wiped out the Wolves despite their A+ effort.\u00a0<\/p>\n More: Undrafted NBA free agents tracker: Signings for OKC Thunder, players with Oklahoma ties<\/a><\/p>\n Thunder pushes back versus Rockets during NBA Cup\u00a0<\/p>\n This youthful OKC core had been described plenty of ways \u2014 too young, too jovial, too exuberant, too inexperienced. Never had it been painted as cowardly. Nor had it truly been tried as such.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the Houston Rockets were fueled by punking teams, by checking their temperature. This Thunder crew, smiling but never pushed over, didn\u2019t flinch.<\/p>\n Between Nov. 20 and Jan. 16, the Thunder suffered just two losses: a national TV nail biter in Cleveland and a one-possession game in Houston. SGA and Dillon Brooks got tangled up in the closing moments of that loss.\u00a0<\/p>\n Naturally, when it became clear that the Thunder would successfully take licks in a win that advanced its Las Vegas trip, tension boiled over. Alperen Sengun and Cason Wallace bucked at each other, and Wallace \u2014\u00a0giving up roughly half a foot \u2014 didn\u2019t back down. Isaiah Hartenstein, a proud teammate, pledged he\u2019d pay a fine that never came.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n More: How OKC Thunder won first NBA title: Relive playoff run by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander & Co.<\/a><\/p>\n SGA\u2019s MVP speech<\/p>\n Fans saw a version of SGA never seen.\u00a0<\/p>\n Emotional, choked up by tears. Expressive about his wife, Hailey, and his son, Ares. This was Gilgeous-Alexander, raw and uncut, after what was the biggest accomplishment of his life to that point.\u00a0<\/p>\n Gilgeous-Alexander dethroned Nikola Jokic to become the Thunder\u2019s first MVP since Russell Westbrook, its third in nine years. The kid from Hamilton, Ontario, who was cut from his junior varsity team. The rookie who was an afterthought in the Paul George trade. Not even general manager Sam Presti predicted Gilgeous-Alexander would run the league like this.\u00a0<\/p>\n The boy became the man that day.<\/p>\n More: OKC Thunder introduces 2025 NBA Draft picks: What Thomas Sorber, Brooks Barnhizer said<\/a><\/p>\n Joel Lorenzi\u00a0covers the Thunder and NBA for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joel? He can be reached at jlorenzi@oklahoman.com or on X\/Twitter at\u00a0@joelxlorenzi. Sign up for the\u00a0Thunder Sports Minute newsletter<\/a>\u00a0to access more NBA coverage. Support Joel’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a\u00a0digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"That 17-year dream was reality at last.\u00a0 The ambitions of Sam Presti, materialized into so many eras and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":134593,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[7,618,366,311,948,619,947,949,832,364,54,79,70,85,6,11,62,67,310,179,61,81,65,66,83,55,64,312,63,82,833],"class_list":{"0":"post-134592","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba-playoffs","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-chet","10":"tag-chet-holmgren","11":"tag-city","12":"tag-hartenstein","13":"tag-holmgren","14":"tag-isaiah","15":"tag-isaiah-hartenstein","16":"tag-jalen","17":"tag-jalen-williams","18":"tag-modular","19":"tag-modular-story","20":"tag-national","21":"tag-national-sports","22":"tag-nba","23":"tag-nba-playoffs","24":"tag-neutral","25":"tag-news","26":"tag-oklahoma","27":"tag-oklahoma-city-thunder","28":"tag-overall","29":"tag-overall-neutral","30":"tag-point","31":"tag-sports","32":"tag-sports-news","33":"tag-story","34":"tag-the","35":"tag-thunder","36":"tag-to","37":"tag-to-the-point","38":"tag-williams"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/114767914902110510","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134592"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134592\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134593"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}