The Oklahoma City Thunder are less than two weeks away from kicking off their 2025-26 season with a home game against the Houston Rockets. Before that contest tips off, the Thunder will receive their championship rings for their NBA Finals victory last season.
Needless to say, expectations for the Thunder are sky high heading into the new season, especially considering that they are bringing back their entire core from a year ago.
Recently, ESPN NBA insider Bobby Marks took to “NBA Today” to drop a bold prediction for just how successful Oklahoma City will be this year.
“They're not going to hit 60, they're going to hit 70 [wins],” predicted Marks, per NBA on ESPN on X, formerly Twitter.
Last year, the Thunder were in contention for 70 wins for a large chunk of the year, ultimately settling for a meager 68.
A huge opportunity for the Thunder
While championship repeats are more common in the NBA than in other sports leagues, they've still been a rarity in recent years. In fact, no defending champion has made it out of the second round the ensuing year since the Golden State Warriors in 2019.
This year, the Thunder will look to do just that, and figure to have a great chance of doing so with reigning league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the charge.
Oklahoma City had great luck on the injury front for most of last year and especially in the playoffs, which no doubt played a role in their championship win and may not be the case this time around.
However, the Thunder have put together one of the deepest rosters in the league, capable of winning games in multiple ways even when the full starting lineup isn't in action.
This year, the Thunder will go into every matchup knowing that they will get the opponent's best shot, which may be a new feeling for what is still one of the younger teams in the NBA.
In any case, the Thunder and Rockets are scheduled to kick off the 2025-26 NBA season on October 21 at 7:30 PM ET from Oklahoma City.
