The late 2010s Golden State Warriors were the model of excellence. Even before acquiring Kevin Durant, those Steph Curry-led Warriors broke multiple records in 2016 (most wins in a regular season, 24-0 start was the longest win streak to open a season). After living through those teams that "ruined basketball", you didn't expect another potential dynasty to come around so quickly. But here came the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The NBA has been a parity parade since the 2020s began. We've yet to have a repeat champion this decade, and OKC aims to crush that trend. They aren't satisfied with their championship last season; they're back for more. Even with all the injuries they've faced so far this year, the Thunder are still in reach of more history than the aforementioned late 2010s Warriors teams.
Some of the benchmarks in play are more realistic than others, so we'll put the likelihood of OKC's chances to break each record on a scale from one through 10.
74 regular-season wins
That Warriors juggernaut began this season 24-0. That's a ridiculous pace that OKC isn't currently on. The Thunder are 11-1 through 12 games, but they've made it look easy.
OKC is blitzing teams with a plus-15.8 point differential per 100 possessions according to Cleaning The Glass. The Warriors' point differential was 11.6 for the entirety of the season in their historic year. The Thunder are accomplishing this without Jalen Williams suiting up for a single second.
The fact that OKC came out the gate rolling like this without Jdub and multiple other contributors missing time, it'll be easy to come to the conclusion that they should skate by the Warriors' record-breaking season.
What's never forgotten about that Warriors year is that they didn't win the whole thing. They chased greatness in the regular season and gassed out in the 2016 Finals.
If that season taught the basketball world anything, it's that regular-season wins when your playoff seeding is wrapped up shouldn't take priority over getting ready for the postseason.
OKC will rest their guys down the stretch when they lock up the one-seed for the third straight year. The chances of breaking the Warriors' record are 6/10. The difference between the Thunder resting stars and other teams doing the same is that OKC fields bench lineups that outperform some starting lineups.
It wouldn't surprise me if Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins were scoring 30 and 40 points in games in April to help OKC secure their rightful spot in history if they're close enough to that record.
Best net rating of all-time
Those 1996 Bulls hold the record, with a plus-13.4 net rating, and did what the 2016 Warriors couldn't — finish the job. 72-10 don't mean a thing without a ring was the Bulls' motto that season. That wasn't all talk.
That's the greatest team of all time when you combine accolades, context, and dominance. A plus-13.4 net rating is outrageous stuff that Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and the rest of the Bulls made look sweatless. Teams were swarmed with Jordan, Pippen, and Dennis Rodman on the non-glamorous side of the floor.
Multiple elite versatile defenders led to some good results for that iconic Bulls roster. The Thunder have a similar recipe.
Scoring Champ, MVP, first team All-NBA. Michael Jordan racked up those accolades in his sleep, and so has Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. All-Defense, All-Star, versatile wing. That sounds like a reflection of Pippen's resume, but they also describe what Jdub has been able to accomplish.
With those two leading the pack and Chet Holmgren establishing himself as one of the best rim protectors of his generation, the Thunder have the needed ingredients to muddy the waters like those Bulls teams did.
The Thunder are even better offensively than Chicago. OKC shoots more 3s, plays in the free-flowing space and pace era, and forces turnovers at an all-time pace, aiding their transition offense.
Winning 74 games is tough because the margin for error is so slim. The net rating record is more attainable because one loss doesn't end the hope. OKC could lose tomorrow night by a point, then decimate another team the next day by 30, and still keep pace for the net rating record.
OKC currently has a plus-14.0 net rating, which crushes the mark Chicago set in 1996. I see no reason for the Thunder to slow down. They're destroying teams undermanned. The likelihood of breaking the Bulls' record is 8/10. With health to SGA, that record is as good as gone for Jordan and the Bulls.
Undefeated at home
Two teams have lost just once at home in a single regular season since the 3-point line was introduced in 1980: The 2016 San Antonio Spurs (what was in the water in 2016?) and the 1986 Boston Celtics.
Losing a single game at home is too much to ask for in today's NBA landscape. The Thunder have the best defense with one of the best NBA atmospheres, but a team will get hot from 3.
A team will inevitably get hot and bury all the unlikely 3s at some point this season because the skill level is that high in the league today. The skill level of current players is elite, and 41.5 percent of OKC opponents come from behind the line (24th in the league).
The 3-ball changes everything. Can the Thunder's superior defense put the fire out on most occasions? Sure they can with that personnel, but the pressure of going 41-0 at home, with how the 3-point shot has made 20-point leads seem like 10-point deficits, makes me think going undefeated at home is virtually impossible.
I'd give OKC a 2/10 chance of going undefeated at home. If they do that, we're going to make up some new adjectives to describe these Thunder. Greatness wouldn't cut it anymore.
34-game win streak
1/10. Let's get that out of the way early. The same reasons why OKC probably won't go undefeated at home are why they probably won't win a gazillion games in a row. (The 1972 Lakers currently hold the record with a 33-game win streak).
The 3-point shooting and variance are too strong today to confidently predict this. While the Thunder allow plenty of shots from deep, they're middle of the pack when it comes to firing from deep themselves. What happens in that random game in late December when they continue to trade 2s for 3s?
As complete as this Thunder team is, betting on this type of streak will ensure that your $10 is gone. The net rating record feels the most reachable because it's an over-the-season record, and the Thunder were second all-time last year with a 12.8 net rating. They're back and ready for more, and this is the record they'll own at the end of this season.