The Whiteboard: Why the OKC Thunder could knock the Celtics off their throne

The Boston Celtics were the runaway best team in the NBA last season, winning 64 games and coasting through the playoffs without a worthy challenger. Jayson Tatum, widely hailed as the leader of the NBA's next generation, didn't even play that well, but Jaylen Brown put together the 16-win stretch of his life, Boston's supporting cast played its part, and the basketball gods blazed an exceedingly winnable path to glory.

Now the Celtics look to repeat as NBA champs, and folks, they're the favorites. Very few are brave enough to pick against the Celtics and for good reason. Few contenders are so dynamically built and cohesive at the same time. This core has been gelling for years. Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday plugged seamlessly into Joe Mazzulla's equation, giving Boston the extra boost it needed to clear its Eastern Conference competition.

Porzingis is hurt going into the season, Holiday is another year older, but it's borderline impossible to pick against Boston. At least in the East. Philadelphia and New York both made major moves to try and catch the Celtics, but as great as Paul George, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Mikal Bridges are, those teams still have glaring holes and much more to prove. The Celtics are a well-oiled machine, generally guaranteed to deliver at a certain level.

If there is a challenger to Boston's throne, it probably comes from the Western Conference. The West has never been more of a bloodbath. It's impossible to decipher which eight teams will inevitably occupy the postseason field, but let me posit a theory. There is a clear favorite to emerge from that hellacious gauntlet of contenders.

Enter the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Thunder could steal Celtics' crown as the NBA's primary juggernaut

OKC probably deserves more respect as the reigning No. 1 seed, but a second-round exit against Dallas seems to have tempered the excitement around the NBA's youngest contender. It shouldn't take long for the Thunder to remind folks just how good that team is, though. After winning 57 games and finishing atop a cutthroat West despite its overwhelming youth, OKC is meaningfully better this season.

Not only will all of OKC's core pieces be a year older, with invaluable experience under their belts, but Sam Presti finally went all-in on improving the roster. He swindled Chicago into swapping Alex Caruso for Josh Giddey, who actively held OKC back last season. Then, he splurged on Isaiah Hartenstein in free agency to address arguably the Thunder's most pressing area of weakness — physicality in the paint and presence on the glass.

There are a couple lingering injuries to get through as OKC approaches its season opener on Thursday night, but there isn't a single team in the NBA better built to withstand injuries, or more flexible depending on matchups. And yes, that includes the Celtics.

For example, OKC has the depth to withstand Hartenstein's five-to-six week absence stemming from a fractured left hand. Most teams lose their starting center and suffer an incalculable void in the middle of their defense. The Thunder will just move Chet Holmgren to the five and surround him with four of the NBA's best perimeter defenders.

The primary impetus for propping up OKC as the challenger to Boston's mantle is, naturally, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He is a prime MVP candidate this season, especially if OKC can tease 60 wins in this conference. SGA would be the best player in a hypothetical Thunder-Celtics Finals, with all due respect to Tatum. Whereas Tatum has wavered on the postseason stage in the past, SGA is one of the more bankable, workmanlike superstars in recent memory. He doesn't get rattled. He has that 'clutch' gene folks love to rave about. Gilgeous-Alexander is a walking advantage, blessed with unbelievable dexterity, ball-handling craft, and finishing touch. He's the most prolific slasher in the NBA and there isn't a defense built to keep him out of the paint.

That alone gives me reason to favor OKC as a potential juggernaut. The Thunder have a top-five player locked down, but we can keep on comparing the supporting casts. Jalen Williams or Jaylen Brown? Give me the former, especially with another year of development. Chet Holmgren or Kristaps Porzingis? The former, again. Derrick White and Jrue Holiday at Boston's secret weapons, two of the most disruptive defenders in the NBA and damn solid offensive engines to boot. The Thunder don't have a Derrick White or a Jrue Holiday, but Alex Caruso is closer than you'd think. Lu Dort can tilt the moment of a game with his on-ball pressure. Hartenstein, when healthy, is among the most disciplined and effective defensive anchors on the planet.

We can't ignore depth either. OKC is getting better across the board with each passing season. Such are the virtues of a young team. Cason Wallace has legitimate All-Star upside, although his path to playing time is somewhat obscured at the moment. He's already an all-world guard defender who scored with absurd efficiency for a rookie guard. As a 20-minute bench cog, Wallace is going to really surprise folks with the value he supplies. Isaiah Joe is an elite movement shooter. Kenrich Williams is the best player your friends haven't heard of. Aaron Wiggins got a nice little extension this summer, which was well earned. These are all front-of-bench guys for most teams. God forbid if Ajay Mitchell, Dillon Jones, or Ousmane Dieng hit. OKC has so much talent in the pipeline, it's absurd. And this doesn't even factor in Nikola Topic, a top-five prospect from the 2024 draft who won't debut until next season.

The Thunder have so many pieces to mix and match, helmed by one of the most dynamic and consistent two-way forces in the NBA. If we want to think ahead to a potential Boston-OKC Finals, the Thunder are perhaps the only team in the league truly equipped to match the Celtics blow-for-blow on the tactical front. Joe Mazzulla is a coaching psycho and one of the best in the business. So is Mark Daigneault. That may be a series where OKC has to option out of big minutes for Hartenstein, but with their collection of high-leverage wing defenders and plus decision-makers, that shouldn't be too challenging a task.

OKC is dangerously close to stealing Boston's thunder. And yeah, OKC is going to keep getting better with each passing month, and each passing season. This team is at the very beginning of its competitive arc. Holmgren and Williams are still figuring out the extent of their star-power. That bench mob is going to unearth a couple hidden gems before all is said and done.

So, don't be shocked if we're talking about OKC as your reigning NBA champs this time next year.

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NBA news roundup:

• The Warriors couldn't agree to terms on a rookie-scale extension for Jonathan Kuminga, which puts restricted free agency on the docket next summer. After holding the 22-year-old out of potential trades for Paul George and Lauri Markkanen, the Dubs sure are playing with fire. There could be some lingering regret.

• Both Joel Embiid and Paul George will miss the Sixers' season opener against Milwaukee on Wednesday. So, it has already begun. Embiid and George are expected to sit out back-to-backs this season, too, which begs the question — how much of this new 'big three' will we actually see in 2024-25? Embiid is ramping up but will miss the first week of the season. George will be re-evaluated at week's end. Not a dream start for Philadelphia fans.

• Jalen Green landed the first 2-plus-1 rookie extension in NBA history from the Rockets, signing for three years and $106 million, with a player option in the final year. That is a risky deal for Houston, as Green can either reach his ceiling and leave after two years, or plateau and severely underperform. Green has not been a $106 million player to date, and Houston can only allocate so much developmental time to Amen Thompson, Cam Whitmore, and Reed Sheppard — all arguably better long-term bets than Green. So, it'll be fascinating to see how Houston navigates this.

The best rookie extension handed out yesterday belongs to...

Corey Kispert?

The Washington Wizards re-upped their former No. 15 pick on a four-year, $54 million extension. That seems almost criminal in a world where Jalen Suggs is getting $150 million. That's not to say Suggs isn't better than Kispert, but is he almost $100 million better? The NBA's rising cap ceiling has ballooned contracts league-wide, so Washington just nailed down a major rotation cog for well below market value. We saw the Wizards accomplish a similar feat with Deni Avdija not long ago, which turned into a nice trade haul.

Whether Kispert remains part of Washington's long-term plans or ends up in trade talks, this is the sort of value contract every front office dreams of. It won't muck up the cap sheet if the Wizards start trying to win games soon, or it could make Kispert an especially valuable trade target for contenders in need of affordable shooting.

Credit to the Washington front office. That team is a mess, but they're doing something right as this rebuild gets underway in full.