Thunder greeted with cheers by fans following playoff elimination by Mavericks

It was fair to expect improvement from the Oklahoma City Thunder, a young team that made the Play-In Tournament last season, but expecting them to do what they did would've been seen as unrealistic.

Not only did the Thunder take the next step and make the playoffs, but they were dominant in the regular season. They went 57-25 and held the No. 1 seed in a loaded Western Conference. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander solidified himself as an MVP candidate, Jalen Williams emerged as one of the best two-way players in the game, and Chet Holmgren had an outstanding rookie year.

The Thunder took care of business in the first round, sweeping the No. 8 seeded New Orleans Pelicans, but their magical season would end soon after, as the Thunder were eliminated in six games by the No. 5 seeded Dallas Mavericks.

It's hard to feel ashamed when losing a series against a team with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving on it, but it felt like, at least on paper, this was a series that the Thunder should have won. Despite falling short, Thunder fans showed their appreciation for the run they were taken on by greeting the team with cheers when they landed back in Oklahoma City.

Thunder fans give team a heroes welcome despite early playoff exit

Thunder fans have an outstanding reputation for a reason, and this just adds to it. The franchise hasn't been in OKC for too long and hasn't won an NBA championship, but the fan base is as supportive as any in the NBA.

Thunder fans sell out the arena routinely when they're competitive, are loud and engaged, and even stand until OKC scores their first basket of the game. This is just the latest example of what a fan base should strive to do. Yes, the result wasn't what they wanted, but the Thunder shocked people by getting this far to begin with.

The Thunder have one of, if not the brightest future in the NBA, armed with an outstanding young core and a ton of draft capital. It's on Sam Presti to continue to build this team to compete for an NBA championship. We know Thunder fans will be there supporting the team no matter what.