A fatal mistake the Thunder must correct at the 2025 NBA trade deadline

The The Oklahoma City Thunder have arrivedas if that wasn’t obvious enough already. They are probably the favorites to win the Larry O’Brien trophy this season, and for good reason; they have a ton of playoff-ready players in the rotation, and their best player, Shai Gilgeez-Alexander, was only bolstered by their playoff exit to the Dallas Mavericks last season. Most importantly, their defense is the best in the league, by a healthy margin. And as the old saying goes, defense wins championships.

But if ever there was a franchise that now knows how to take championship windows for granted, it’s Thunder. They of all teams would know how it feels to fumble a great team that was on the verge of going over the hump. And given the current CBA landscape, it’s not too often that an opportunity comes along to put together as stacked a roster as possible.

Regardless, there’s something to be said for maintaining roster harmony; everyone on the Thunder’s roster loves each other, and they’re on a roll, having lost just one (or two, if you count their loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2024 NBA Cup Finals) game since December 3rd.

This Thunder roster has no fatal flaws; Sam Presti can be proud of the fact that he has created a list that is almost complete. But it’s fair to wonder if there’s anything they can do to increase their championship odds even more without coming at the cost of anything that would change the makeup of the team.

Should the Thunder rest on their laurels or not?

As the old saying goes, if something ain’t broke, why bother doing anything to fix it. There is nothing broken about the Thunder roster. Despite not having the best record in the league (though not too far behind the 33-5 Cleveland Cavaliers with a 32-6 record of their own), they have the league’s best net rating at +12.7 — showing that they are the most dominant team in the NBA in terms of margin of victory.

The Thunder also have one of the best offenses in the league, as they rank sixth in the NBA in offensive rating, which is more than enough to propel their historically great defense to nearly 70 wins. And at all positions, they have more than enough depth.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may be grabbing all the headlines, but she has an ideal supporting cast; he has a top shot creator on the wing in Jalen Williams, who is no slouch defensively. The Thunder then boast an incredible defensive trio on the wing in Lugentz Dort, Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace – three players who can catch even the best scorers in the league. And then they addressed their biggest offseason weakness (rebounding) by adding Isaiah Hartenstein, who has only missed three games (including the NBA Cup Finals) since returning from injury.

Opposing teams are already shaking in their boots just imagining the elite defense the Thunder will boast every night when Caruso and Chet Holmgren put their injury woes in the rearview mirror. One factor that can define a championship-winning team is its ability to switch, and OKC can definitely fit in well with any team.

But one has to wonder how much room for improvement there is for this excellent Thunder team. Perhaps they could use another 3-and-D player to lean on in key moments; Caruso will dare to shoot when it matters most — will he make enough shots to make the defense pay off? Will the likes of Aaron Wiggins and Wallace come up with giant buckets? Can Isaiah Joe survive on defense to warrant heavy minutes as designated sniper in rotation championship team?

All signs point to the answers to those questions being yes. But The Thunder might have one insurance move to increase their chances for the title.

Will OKC pull the Cam Johnson trade?

Cam Johnson remains one of the most attractive trade targets for contending teams. Johnson may have some injury issues, but he’s playing the best basketball of his career, and as an option for the lowly Brooklyn Nets, no less. He is currently averaging 19.5 points per game on an elite 67 percent true shooting percentage thanks to an excellent 43 percent shooting from deep.

Johnson’s 6’8″ size won’t make him a pick-and-roll target for opposing teams, which makes him a pretty good fit for the Thunder do they go this way. But will Sam Presti pull the trigger on a deal that will cost them at least Aaron Wiggins on top of what the Nets are asking for?