Fresh off their first championship in franchise history, the Oklahoma City Thunder have kept the momentum rolling early in the 2025-26 season. After a 123-115 win to close out November, over the Portland Trail Blazers — the only team to have beaten the Thunder this season — OKC is now 20-1, which already puts this squad in rarefied air.
The win gave them a 12-game win steak, and they're just the fourth team in NBA history to start a season 20-1 or better.
The Thunder already had a hellacious defense last season, but they've somehow leveled up on that end of the floor this year. Heading into December, they had the league's best defensive rating by a country mile. In fact, the gap between them (103.6) and the second-place Houston Rockets (110.3) was wider than the gap between Houston and the 23rd-place Chicago Bulls (116.8).
The Thunder did almost all of that without All-NBA forward Jalen Williams, who didn't return from wrist surgery until Friday, Nov. 28. They did just lose starting center Isaiah Hartenstein to a calf strain for at least 10-14 days, which will put additional strain on Chet Holmgren in his absence, but Williams' return could help mitigate that.
The Thunder have had the league's easiest schedule thus far, so they could come back down to earth at some point. But what if they don't?
What record are the Thunder chasing?
Only two teams in NBA history have topped the 70-win mark in the regular season: The 1995-96 Chicago Bulls and the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors. The Bulls proceeded to win the championship that year — and each of the next two — while the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead in the 2016 NBA Finals. (They proceeded to sign Kevin Durant, broke the NBA and won the next two titles.)
Last year's Thunder won a franchise-record 68 games, which was tied for the fifth-best mark of all time. This year's group currently has an even higher winning percentage.
Best records in NBA history
Team | Wins | Losses | W/L% |
|---|---|---|---|
2025-26 Thunder | 20 | 1 | .952 |
2015-16 Warriors | 73 | 9 | .890 |
1995-96 Bulls | 72 | 10 | .878 |
1996-97 Bulls | 69 | 13 | .841 |
1971-72 Lakers | 69 | 13 | .841 |
2024-25 Thunder | 68 | 14 | .829 |
1972-73 Celtics | 68 | 14 | .829 |
1966-67 Sixers | 68 | 14 | .829 |
How many more wins does OKC need to catch the Warriors?
The Thunder have 61 games remaining this season. They need to win at least 49 of them to top the franchise record that they set last season, and 50 of them to become the third team ever to top 70 wins in a season.
To match the 1995-96 Bulls, the Thunder would need to go at least 52-9 over the rest of the season. To match the 2015-16 Warriors, they'd have to go at least 53-8.
To set a new NBA record for the most wins in a season — not counting the NBA Cup final, if they make it that far — the Thunder would have to go no worse than 54-8 from here on out. That might feel doable considering how they've started this season, but they'd have little margin for error or injuries.
What was the Warriors' record through 21 games?
The 2015-16 Warriors got off to a 24-0 start before they lost their first game, which was by far the best start to a season in NBA history. The Cleveland Cavaliers tied the second-best mark in league history last year by going 15-0 before losing their first game.
What is the Thunder's current pace?
While the Thunder might feel like a lock to win 70-plus games this season, projection models disagree at the moment.
Basketball Reference's current projections have them at 64.2 wins and 18.8 losses, which would put them well outside of the top 10 records all-time. Their best-case projection is 75-8 — which presumably includes the NBA Cup final — while their worst-case projection is 50-33. Either way, the Thunder already have a 100 percent chance to make the playoffs and a 95.5 percent chance to win the Northwest Division, according to Basketball Reference's projections.
Oddsmakers are slightly more bullish on the Thunder. FanDuel Sportsbook currently has their win total over/under at 68.5. Still, that would put them a few games short of breaking the Warriors' all-time record.
Best net ratings in NBA history
Even if the Thunder fall short of the 70-win threshold, they're currently on pace to make a different kind of NBA history.
Team | Net Rating |
|---|---|
2025-26 Thunder | +15.2 |
1995-96 Bulls | +13.4 |
2024-25 Thunder | +12.8 |
1996-97 Bulls | +12.0 |
2025-26 Rockets | +11.9 |
2016-17 Warriors | +11.6 |
2023-24 Celtics | +11.6 |
2015-16 Spurs | +11.3 |
By any objective measure — win/loss record, net rating, etc. — last year's Thunder were one of the best teams in NBA history. This year's version might be even better.
And what's really scary? Thanks to the reeling Los Angeles Clippers, who owe the Thunder their fully unprotected 2026 first-round pick, the 2026-27 iteration of the Thunder might even be better than this year's squad.