OKC Thunder Regular Season Still MATTERS, Who Can DEVELOP? (Mailbag)

OKC Thunder Regular Season Still MATTERS, Who Can DEVELOP? (Mailbag)

On today’s Locked on Thunder podcast, the Thunder’s regular season still matters even after they won a championship. You are Locked On Thunder, your daily Oklahoma City Thunder podcast, part of the Locked on Podcast Network. Your team every day. Let’s get it going on the Lockdown Thunder podcast. on the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. I am your host, medium member and beat writer for Thunder on SI, Ryland Styles. Follow me on Twitter at Ryland_Styles. Follow the show on Twitter, lolunderpod. Email the show lunderpodgmail.com. On today’s show, we’re diving into why the Thunder’s regular season still matters. We’re going to answer your mailbag questions and we’re going to preview the week ahead. It’s going to be a very fun, busy week here on Locked on Thunder, including the return of our squad show. It’s going to be so much fun to talk with all of our hosts around Locked on NBA. You can go check out Locked in NBA, the national podcast, talking all things basketball over there. But on today’s show, to ease into a week that honestly uh in terms of a news standpoint is a dead week, let’s talk about the regular season. Let’s get you ready for what will be here before we know it. I I know right now the regular season feels like a distant distant oasis, but in reality, you know, you get through August and you jump through September and you wiggle around the preeason. I mean, where do you think about it? What do you think about it? It’s just a hop, skip, and a jump away. Because really, once you get to the end of September and media day happens and we’re watching training camp and trying to make these sweeping takeaways and the preeason unfolds, I mean, then you’re in the thick of things again. Then you’re right back in the mix. And the beautiful thing about the NBA, especially for a team as deep as Oklahoma City, the preeason truly matters, right? Like the the NFL preseason, spring training, you can’t take anything away from those things. And obviously you don’t want to take massive implications from the NBA’s preseason, but at least the players on the court matter. With all due respect to Taylor Hineki and Hinden Hooker, I can’t really get going for the Hall of Fame game on Thursday. I really can’t. I love Hinden Hooker. I’ll watch the first drive. You know, I I’ll I’ll psych myself up for it. But it’s a game played in Canton, Ohio. Nobody worth their salts really on the field. It doesn’t really matter. But with the NBA, their preseason does matter. So, you get there and at least that’s the longest wait is to October 6th or whatever the first game is for OKC in the preseason. We’re going to have the schedule released in August. Like, that’ll be another fun little hallmark, especially for the sickos who listen to a Thunder podcast year round. to which I really appreciate you because trust me, you still need to make a living in August. Believe it or not, Uncle Sam and and the powers that be do not stop for anyone. So now, let’s talk about the regular season because it is just a hop, skip, and a jump away. I still think that the 82game marathon matters for Oklahoma City. And I know that typically when you look at past champions, the the season after uh you can dub it a hangover season, you can call it whatever you want to, but it doesn’t have the same sense of urgency. It doesn’t have the same sense of power because it feels like you’re just waiting around to the playoffs. Like last year, Boston in the regular season, like they they weren’t the best team in the East, but we all still held them in such regard as like the team to beat in the NBA until they wilt it away in the Garden in round two. But with this Thunder team, there’s so many things to watch and they won it so early in this core’s tenure as NBA players that I think that the 82game marathon is still very important and still holds just as much weight as the postseason because obviously it’s hard to go back to back. to Thunder are positioned in a way in which they they have the best the best chance to go back to back of any of the recent winners in the in the era of parody that we live in. The first real time that the NBA has lived in a parody era in the league’s history. But when you look at this regular season, you’re looking at a team that even at the top of their roster, you should see a step forward from JDub. And that step forward can be as simple as him sustaining the level of play that he had in the postseason. But that level of play in the postseason happened with a torn ligament in his wrist. But you saw in the playoffs him hit a new height in terms of aggression, him hit a new height in terms of offensive prowess, just wanting to get to the rim and score the basketball. And you saw in the finals in in it was the game four against Indiana where the Thunder kind of came back and erased the opportunity to be down 3-1 and really end the series that the twoman game between Shay and JDub really came to life. I would expect OKC to explore more of that. those two guys playing off of each other offensively and setting screens for one another and doing the guardtoguard screens that allowed Sheay to go off in that fourth quarter, but it also would open things up for JDub if teams were to focus on Shay. So I I think that JDub just has another gear to hit. Chad Homegrren has the biggest leap to make as a player. I think he’s already an elite level defenseman and when you see him play 65 plus games this season, you’ll see him on the all defensive team. You’ll see him in conversations for defensive player of the year. But offensively, how you’re watching this regular season wondering how close can he get to the first nine games of this past season? Because prior to the hip injury for Chad Homegrren, he was an absolute allstar. like he he was playing to a degree in nine games, very small sample size, that would warrant MVP conversations with what he was doing both offensively and defensively. His ability to score off the catch, get to the rim, get fouled, get to the free throw line, get some easy points there. His ability to knock down threes. What does it look like now being removed from that hip fracture with another summer of development? Where’s Chad’s offense at? That’s a massive storyline. That’s a massive reason to watch. That’s a huge care factor in all of this. Shay every year has gotten better. Now, it’s hard to be better than the league scoring champ, the MVP, the West Finals MVP, and the NBA Finals MVP. hard to take a step forward from the year that Shay put out, which was a historic one, which was a season that can only be compared to Michael Jordan, the best, if not the second best player to ever play the sport. So, his leap will look different, won’t necessarily be based in statistics you don’t believe. But what if he adds that three-point shot off the dribble? What if the step forward that you saw him take in the playmaking category this season gets honed in on and he takes another step forward as a passer. So Sheay at 27 years old still has room to grow while you’re also built around a 23-year-old center who has unicorn-like potential and a 24 year old who’s already been an all-star, an allNBA player and an alldefensive player and the number two scoring option on a title team. So just looking at the top three, that’s why you still have a vested interest in the regular season because then you look to Kase Wallace, this 22year-old who if he can get back to where he was as a three-point shooter his rookie season, plus add anything on the ball as he as he did take baby steps in that category this past season like Kase Wallace’s season will go a long way in determining his future. future to me because it while we’re discussing and will discuss you know who are the Thunder going to invest in who’s going to play their way out of OKC in a positive way right like could Kase Wallace take such a step forward that by the time you get to the end of this rookie contract teams are willing to pay out the wazoo for his services and you just can’t match it with how expensive the top of this roster is so Wallace is a guy that makes the regular season very interesting. And we haven’t even uttered the name Nicola Topic, who is a number 12 pick for you that hasn’t played a single possession yet, but throughout the course of his prospect career, he was viewed as a top five pick in his draft in 2024. Bobby Marx, who’s a very plugged in guy, has talked to people around the league that think he would have gone top five in this loaded draft class of 2025. I don’t know that that’s fair, but just how can he get on the floor with some of the limitations that he might have in terms of the defense, but the ceiling offensively is so appealing. It’s almost like AJ Mitchell’s rookie season because he only played the first half of last year in which he was in the rotation from day one with a loaded roster and stayed there because of how well he performed and looks like the absolute perfect fit for OKC. So much so that I’ve said multiple times on this show, he’ll be a top eight player for the Thunder as they hope to repeat as champions. How close can he get to that? Can he surpass that? Haven’t he mentioned the rookies, Thomas Schwarber being chief among them? like what does Schwber look like his rookie season which plays a big factor in what you do with Isaiah Hartinstein who has a $28.5 million you know team option at the end of this year and many believe this year will be the final year that Hartinstein is dawning Thunder blue could Sorber and his play one way or the other impact what OKC does with Hartinstein like those are huge selling points and we haven’t even really had the stretch right like you haven’t even had to get to the point where you’re like, “Okay, if you’re a real sickle, you’ll care about Isaiah Joe and can he take a step forward?” If you’re a real sickle, you’re you’ll care about Aaron Wiggins and can he be a better defender? If you’re a real sickle, you’ll care about like we haven’t even gotten to that point yet. All while OKC is in such a unique position when you just try to factor in their win total. We’ll talk about that, what the Thunder’s win total could be, and answer your questions coming up. But first, I want to say right now, my good friends over at Five Hour Energy, go check out Five Hour Energy today because if you are in need of a fuel up, you can turn it over to 5Hour Energy. The 5-hour Energy Transfusion, it brings you a bold grape, ginger, and lime flavor. Uh, whatever your favorite is for your favorite golf drink mixed with alcohol into a quick energizing shot. Whether you’re sinking birdies or just want to make memories with friends, this one is a hole-in-one for your energy game. So, let’s be honest, some days on the course or even off of it, you need an extra boost to stay sharp, to be energized. And the absolute craziest day for me happens off the golf course. I’ve actually never golfed before, so actually every day that that’s ever been crazy is not on the golf course. as someone who’s never golfed, although maybe after watching Happy Gilmore, we’ll get out there on the old grains. But when the Thunder are out there making moves and the NBA world is spinning at at a topsyturvy level and all of a sudden there’s 16 trades in a day and you’ve got to write 10 articles about it and do 50 podcasts about it, 5 hour energy can really help fuel you in that day in that hectic hectic day that we all have at our respective jobs. So golf is about as good of a time to be with good people with great flavors and of course the grape ginger lime flavor gives you the best parts of your clubhouse go-to without chasing down the bevart. Go check it out today at 5 hour energy.com. It’s the number fivehour energy.com the number fiveoury.com. So you can use my my promo code lockdown to receive 20% off your order. This offer is valid until September 30th. one other order for you that you cannot pass up because on one order and it cannot be used on any other promotionals. Just my code lockdown golf for you from now to September 30th to make sure you’re getting in on this deal. Whether you’re meeting up with friends or just trying to turn 18 holes into 36, get energized to boost and power through. Order the transfusion flavored 5-hour energy shot today at 5 hour energy.com. We’re back on the Lockdown Thunder podcast on the Lockdown Podcast Network, your teams every day. You’re talking about the Thunder and the regular season that is and will be for the Thunder. So, we’ve talked about the story lines and again, we we didn’t dive in a ton to the sicko story lines of just what is Isaiah Joe’s ceiling? Has he already hit it? Can he be a better three-point shooter when it comes to volume? Can Wiggins take a step forward defensively which allows him to stay on the court offensively where he’s proven to be a three-level score? Jill, like Jill being out there is interesting because again you you tie everything back to the decision-m process that you have to have with Hartinstein at the end of this season. Chill put up triple double numbers whenever he was actually thrown into the fire during games in which the Thunder wanted to rest their main players. is now triple double numbers is not to be expected for Jill, but it does show uh the the sort of chops that he has on top of that Denver series where he was really good for OKC to help them win that round two series in quest of a championship. Like where has Jill progressed to when it comes to can you move him up to a second string big when the time comes? Do you want him as like the best third string center in the NBA? That storyline will be very fun to watch. Usman Jang is just someone floating out in the ether where I don’t think that anything will come of Usman Jang and OKC. I I think that his days are numbered. I think that by the time you get to the trade deadline, uh Usman Jang will no longer be a member of this team. But in reality, the hope for OKC, I think, should be that Us has a great season. And and it’s deeper than just like you hope everybody plays good. it financially speaking because with the restrictions with the new CBA etc etc if USM has a contract year and we think of these contract years as like guys putting up career numbers knowing that they need to get paid this summer I don’t think anyone’s going to give us even after a fantastic season in his role if he were to have one a massive payday because you can’t risk it being a flash in the pan you can’t be as as a gambling man as you once could in the front office or woman and make this decision because of what it does on the back end if you if you miss if you fail if you get duped by someone in a contract year. So teams are going to be more conservative with these contracts to where in the past you’d see teams and you can watch it happen right now this off seasonason used seed teams give restricted free agents these goddy contracts that they never intended to sign understanding that teams would match it their their present team would match it and now be stuck with that contract. So with us, I think that if he has a great season and really turns the corner at age 22 as a player who everyone knew would be a project coming in and who really has made some steps behind the scenes with the blue, if he becomes a good player, you can resign him to a very teamfriendly deal, force him to prove it over the course of the next three seasons, and now you have another very cheap contributor. Now, I don’t think that that’ll happen, but if you want to live in fairy tale land on July 28th, I’m not going to stop you. So, like even Us is interesting to watch for whatever time he gets on the floor. Brandon Carlson on a two-way deal and Brooks Barnheiser on a two-way deal. Those are the two more of the two interesting players in the NBA to have two-way contracts because I think that the Thunder love Brooks Barnheiser. I I think that he has Thunder DNA coursing through his veins and he’s a guy that I think will be converted to a to a standard contract at the trade deadline and be the next guy in line when we’re rattling off all these second round picks that Sam Prey has hit on. I think he’s hit on another guy than Brooks Barnheiser. And then Brennan Carlson. A lot of people fell in love with Brandon Carlson during the course of this regular season whenever the Thunder were banged up and he had to play and especially that Cleveland game uh the rematch that the NBA dubbed it as. And people were shocked that he didn’t get a didn’t get a contract in the standard variety across the league, but in reality it goes back to the CBA. You can’t really cast these flyer contracts as willy-nilly as you used to be able to. And then the suitors weren’t there for Carlson. Like I I think that you know when you when you look around who would it make sense to bet on Carlson Brooklyn could have taken a flyer but then Brooklyn drafts five rookies and they can no longer take a they no longer have the space to take a flyer. So, if you’re going to be on the end of the bench anyway, why not be at a program like this that not only develops talent in the G- League, which Carlson will be a focal point of, but it all goes back. All roads lead is a is a very uh interesting uh advertisement strategy by at least a lot of companies in Lton. All roads lead to blank. I tell you, there’s only three roads, so they probably do lead to whatever establishment you’re trying to get people into. All roads lead to car to Isaiah Hartinstein on this Thunder roster because if Carlson can parlay the same level of success that he had a year ago in OKC and you do need to make a tough decision on Isaiah Hartinstein this summer and people are right that like hey this is the last year of Hartinstein being an OKC and that’s where I’d side too. I would also side with this is the last year of Hartstein playing with the Thunder. If that’s the correct way of thinking, Brandon Carlson can play himself into an into the bench spot in OKC on a standard deal. So like he’s also interesting to see where he ends up at what what he lands at as a player. I I think when you look up and down this roster, like Kendrick is not very interesting to watch. Like you know what Kendrick says, he’s he’s a fantastic clubhouse guy. He’s a fantastic role player whenever he gets spot minutes, but he is what he is. I think that Crusoe has hit his ceiling and you know that in the regular season uh you need to be very guarded with him. I think that Hartinstein kind of is what he is. I think that Lud Dort is what he is at this point. But that’s it. That’s that’s the list of guys who are uh at the peak of their powers that you don’t want to see where they progress from here or what or what they look like from here to determine what the future of the Thunder looks like. And so I think that this regular season will be very interesting and it’s it’s a catch22 when it comes to predicting their win total right right now like people are are gung-ho on on the Thunder and their ability to be the one seed in the West. And I think that they will again be the one seed in the West. But when you look at the FanDuel odds for the Thunder win total, it’s 62 and a half and the over is minus uh 106. The under is minus two is minus 125. and you approach this subject and you can really play devil’s advocate for either side. The the kind of natural response from me would be you look at it and say, “Well, they won 68 games last year.” But I would expect them to really hone in on this load management tactic for a team that just played to the end of June and that wants to play to the end of June again. like they want to get to the championship again. So, they’ve played a season and a half of basketball in one year and hope to do the same this season. There could be more nights where you don’t want to see Chad Homegra on the floor. You don’t want to see iiehart on the floor. Of course, Caruso, but even Jada and Shay, you want to get them some spells throughout the season after what they, you know, shouldered a year ago. And then you look at this team’s depth and say, well, last year they were only fully healthy for 8.5% of the season and they still won 68 games. They were more healthy in the postseason than they ever had been in the real season, you know, in the regular season. So, what is that what what do you do with that information? Is this team just good enough to keep winning uh and winning 60 plus games even as they’re going to, I think, have to rest some guys, have to be more cautious with players minutes. I I would take the over on the Thunder just by nature of they’re that good and and they’ve proven that they can win when they play their B team, so to say, and that their B team is better than a lot of NBA teams. And then you get into the question that we posed on locked at NBA game night Saturday with Gavin Shaw of could the Thunder chase a historic record and could they be a team that win 70s something games and just the unknown of it all because to me the Thunder’s approach to all this has been very cautious um has been very you look at last year right they were neckand-neck with Cleveland they knew what homecourt advantage would mean they also knew that like you for the for the overall best record to really matter, both one seeds have to make the NBA finals. And if you get to the NBA finals, you’ll play it on the moon. It doesn’t really you’ll play it anywhere like it’s the NBA finals. And so they didn’t change their approach to chase regular season wins whenever they were in a battle with Cleveland. They they got that mark organically playing to their identity, playing as they did last year where they you know that that Portland game they were investigated for for shutting guys down in that game and they still won. They were investigated over a win. So I don’t think that the chase for 70s something wins is going to be on the top of their agenda. But I’ve been wrong before. How close can they get? How close do they want to get? where where is their level at? And then the last topic that’s like hard to quantify is just for the regular season being so interesting, their mantra this entire rebuild has been zero and zero. Whether they’re winning 24 games or 68 games, it’s been zero and zero. It’s been prioritizing the game in front of them and not looking ahead. after you’ve won a championship, are they still, and I say this, I say this endearingly, are they still robots where they can still do that? They’ve been through the wars now of two postseasons and this one that that saw two sevengame battles in a championship. There’s still confetti in the crevices of the pay center that they can’t get out because of what a celebration it was. Can you really be zero and zero and muster that same intensity for a Tuesday night in Charlotte? And maybe they can. And everything about this roster today on July 28th, 2025 in the year of our Lord suggests that they’re going to be able to do that. Suggests that they’re going to be able to uh still stay with their 000 principle. But you want to see it. You want to watch it. You want to see what this season takes shape as. So, I think that unlike most champions, the follow the the encore season is exceptionally interesting and the regular season still really matters from a developmental standpoint and from a standpoint of I think that all the contenders are in the West. I’d be pretty shocked if the Eastern Conference has the NBA champion for 2026. I’d be pretty shocked. floored even, which means that the one seed has, you know, never been of more consequence than now because you you would hope that everything holds serve and like the top eight teams or the or the corrupt top eight teams and no team had a uh strange season where they end up being uh undersed so to say. And if you’re the top seed and and Denver and Houston on the other side of the bracket, that’s a huge win. So, you’re going to want to still go after that number one spot to delay the games against true teams of consequence. So, I think that everyone should buckle up and be prepared for this regular season. Subscribe to Lockdown Thunder so you know what’s going on with OKC. It’s the daily podcast about OKC, the only one out there. And coming up, let’s answer your questions. Let’s turn the show over to you. We’re back on the Lockdown Thunder podcast on the Lockdown Podcast Network, your teams every day talking about the OKC Thunder. Our first mailbag question is from Fate Loves Iron. What skill does SGA, Jadub, and Chat need to add to their game this off season? I’ll do a whole show on this and just go through the entire roster of what skill set each player would benefit from adding. But for the for the sake of a tease, like we call it in the business and answer your question, let’s hone in on these three with Shay. I think that his playmaking, while not perfect, while not exceptional, I think that it rose to the proper level this season. It obviously rose to a championship level, but it also rose to a point where it is more than functional for the role that he serves. I think that if Shay could develop a true three-point shot where he’s he’s not only good in volume, you know, not only good in in percentages, but good in volume and is more comfortable just drilling at the top of the key, coming off of a screen. You’re gearing up for him to get to his spots in the mid-range and at the rim, and all of a sudden, he just launches a three. if he’s more comfortable taking those threes off the dribble, he’s already unguardable, but really becomes a problem in the sense of a matchup nightmare, which he already is, but it it just reaches an impe. He becomes this kind of enigma almost. I don’t know if I use that word right. I just thought of it, tried to put it in here, where if he can truly launch threes off the dribble, where is the pickup point for Shay? And you see them already try this, right? The other NBA teams, they try to pick him up full court. They try to pick him up, you know, as soon as he hits the nail or the elbow, they’re just going to be on him. They try to give him some space, right, to kind of close out hard on mid-range, but gear up at the rim. But if you have to run him off the free throw line, or if you have to run him off the three-point line, now you got to spend two guys to defend him because you you run him off the three-point line, but you don’t want to give up a mid-range shot. He’s he’s more than willing and able to take them. minutes. His best shot on the floor is in the mid-range, the entire mid-range. So now you got to have somebody behind the guy who runs him off. And now you’re playing a numbers game where it’s four on five and the Thunder off the ball with Shay’s already improved playmaking. They’re going to kill you if you have to uh navigate Shay at the three. And if you just decide, well, you know what, the three-point shot is so volatile that yeah, he’s a better three-point shooter, but we got to pick something. We have to pick something to give up to Shay. And he can start shooting, you know, 38% from three off the dribble, 39%, 40% from three off the dribble. It just opens up a pathway of scoring that was not available to OKC a year ago. And you saw last year, they won a championship while shooting horrendously from three. If I told you before the season began last year what the Thunder three-point percentage would be in the playoffs, you’d have grave concerns about them being bounced in the second round because that’s just not the way that the modern game is designed. But if you have a guy in Shay and if Jaden Chat and proved from there too that they they can just will you into a good three-point shooting night despite what your role players are doing and then you get any help from your role players, then you start to really run away with these games. And they and they had their fair share of blowouts this postseason because of how great they were defensively. And that greatness will be carried over with this team. They didn’t get worse defensively by losing Dylan Jones. Like that’s the only play that they lost on this defense was Dylan Jones. He didn’t play. It’s like this defense is going to be great when it matters. Now, that’s another fun story line to watch in the regular season. How often can they tap into playing elite level defense because they did it nightly a year ago. They’ll for sure do it in the postseason. Where are they at in the regular season? But Shay three-point JDub, I want to see him continue to be, and he’s shown this before, continue to be a force around the rim. And force is a big word in Thunder in the Thunder lexicon. I think I did use that word correctly. Force is a big word in the Thunder lexicon. And in the postseason, you saw Jub explode to the rim from game seven against Denver onward. And his struggles in the playoffs happened whenever he wouldn’t utilize his frame properly and he wouldn’t utilize his physicality properly and he wouldn’t just sure brute strength his way to the cup. And what happened whenever he did? Well, he got easier finishes at the rim. He got fouled which gave him three points which helped the Thunder offense. If you go through an entire season of him playing with the proper force around the rim, where does he go from there as a guy who’s already at this baseline of an all-star, of an allNBA player, of an alldefensive player? And then for Chad, so the easy answer just is three, right? like if he really becomes a solidified three-point shooter, like it just opens things up for him in a massive way to be a true offensive weapon for Oklahoma City as a trailer, as a catch and shoot option, and it puts such harmony in the Thunder’s offense on top of him being elite defensively. Maybe I’m just silly, but I look at Chad Homegrren and I see a guy who at the high school level, really good three-point shooter at Gonzaga, really good three-point shooter. you know, especially when you when you factor in his role, when you factor in the spacing of the college game, really good three-point shooter and at the NBA level is a career 37% three-point shooter. And, you know, and his rookie season really had stretches where he showed you just who he could be from the outside that if he becomes a better player off the catch offensively, that actually opens up more for his game. because the playoff struggles to me from three look like a guy who just lost his legs, which isn’t surprising because he fractured his hip on November 10th. And I think that we don’t qualify what he did this past season with that in mind. Of course, a guy whose shot is naturally flatter, right? He doesn’t have this high arcing touch the banner shot like Luke Dort. His shot naturally when he was at 100% healthy is a flat jumper. Of course, a guy who comes back from being bedridden, doesn’t really have his legs under him at all, but then as the season wears on, he came back February 7th and played until the end of June. As you got deeper into his second season post hip fracture, his legs failed him and that flatter shot, that flat shot became even flatter and it became even less successful. So to me, a healthy chat will shoot 37% 38% from three. So obviously getting to 40% would be massive, but what would be even more impressive is to be a consistent 37% shooter where you don’t have these massive lanes uh and dips throughout your season that you have to make up for it. Like just be a flatline 37% across the season while being a player who can off the catch, get to the rim, get fouled like he did in the first nine games and score in the mid-range. you know, have a guy fly out to the three-point line, take one dribble, rise up at the elbow for a three for a mid-range jumper. Like, that to me is the biggest thing for chat. And that, and again, I understand that the three-point um percentage is the easy answer is the one that people default to, but I look at the three-point percentage, and I could be wrong, but that’s kind of how I feel uh about this and about chat. Uh Ben Goliver says, “Why are you so skeptical of Nicolola Topic?” Uh I’m not skeptical of him long term. Uh, I think long term he’s going to be an interesting player for OKC. And there are question marks. Now, I’m not going to sugarcoat that. There are question marks about his defense. There are question marks about how he fits the Thunder offense specifically. Can he get to a point where he’s an offball play finisher? Can he get to the point where he can utilize his passing in a role that won’t see him in a lot of lineups dominate on the on the ball? But I think that ultimately if you can develop Topic to a uh competitive defender who is more so protected by the elite defenders around him and a and a mediocre three-point shooter, then he’ll be a net positive for OKC because I do believe that, you know, unlike other playmakers in the past, his his route to playmaking and passing, which is kind of a catchall term. His route to improving the Thunder’s offense can happen off the ball. You can swing it to him and instead of just making the next pass, he can skip it around to the other corner and find a guy wide open from three and really put the defense off balance. And the Thunder don’t have a ton of passers who can put the defense off balance. They have a ton of passers who can keep the defense in equilibrium long enough to where they make their own mistake. But Topic can be a guy that flings it to an unexpected location and create something for his teammates. And when he’s on the ball, which he’ll have some, it can be even higher than that. And he’s shown an ability to score at the rim better than the guy he’s always compared to is Josh Giddy. So, I’m not skeptical of Topic long term. But for this specific season, you do look at the roster and you do wonder how he plays, who he plays with, and come playoff time, can he and make those strides in time for April. and the strides that we just explained of being uh from a bad to a competitive defender, from being to a bad to a mediocre or better three-point shooter, like those things take time, especially just coming off of an ACL injury and multiple knee injuries as a prospect. So, I don’t think that you you should really hold Topic to a high standard in his rookie season. I think his rookie season is just the the tip of the iceberg for Topic. It’s just the baseline that you need to head into year two for him and year three for him to continue to build on. And I think that come playoff time, there’s just going to be better options to put on the floor. Whenever minutes grow for the top of your roster in the playoffs, that means minutes shrink for the bottom of your roster. And then in the middle, you need truly positive players. And I don’t know that Topic can get there this season. So that’s where the skepticism comes from from Topic when it comes to this season. Long-term though, I think that he can be a really nice part of contending teams for the Thunder who hope to contend and will contend for the rest of the decade. So I’m not skeptical of Topic. I I think it’s more so realistic uh of Topic. Uh the Meek Leak says, “What’s your take on Houston, Contender or pretender?” I think that they’re a contender. You know, I think that in in the start of the season in October, they might be a team that struggles a little bit and and is overanalyzed, frankly, as they try to work through what does the KD edition look like? How does it function within the team? They’ve they’ve loaded up in the front court and they’ve got to figure out how they’re going to play all their centers. They have a bit of a log jam there. And as they as they work through how to maneuver that rotation, which should help just based upon a guy like Stephen Adams who showed you in the postseason how valuable he can be, but you don’t really want to lean on him a ton in the regular season at this at this current point of his career with as old as he is. Not even necessarily the age, but the mileage on Adams. You want to kind of protect him. You only want to take him out for a Sunday drive, so to say. You don’t want to take him on the highway. He’s that kind of car at this point of his NBA life. But I think that there could be a slight like stumbling out of the gate for Houston when it comes to win loss record. But I think that by the end of the season, they will be in the tier that we’ve placed them throughout this offseason of being it’s OKC, it’s Denver, it’s Houston. Those are the teams that you would expect to win the West and to be at the top of the West. And there’s other teams like the Lakers, like the Clippers, etc. who could, right? There’s a difference between expect and could. And I think that Houston is in that expect category. We still have plenty of questions to answer. We went a little bit long on the regular season stuff and the uh first question. So that means you’ll get another episode of a mailbag podcast where we go through your questions after we talk about how each member of this team can improve on the next show. We’re also going to have some guests lined up for the end of this week and more. So, make sure you plug in, subscribe to Lockdown Thunder anywhere you get your podcast from, including on YouTube.

Oklahoma City Thunder’s championship victory doesn’t diminish the importance of their upcoming regular season. Can the young core continue their meteoric rise?

Rylan Stiles analyzes why the 82-game marathon matters for OKC, exploring player development goals for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren. The host breaks down win total predictions, dissects the Thunder’s “0-0” mentality, and addresses fan questions about rookie Nikola Topic’s potential impact. Stiles also weighs in on the Houston Rockets’ chances as Western Conference contenders.

Tune in for an in-depth look at the Thunder’s path to sustained success and how they plan to build on their championship run.

0:00 Intro: Thunder’s regular season still matters
10:15 Analyzing rookies and roster depth
15:21 Predicting Thunder’s win total for upcoming season
20:58 Balancing rest and chasing historic records
26:03 Key skills for SGA, JDub, and Chet to improve
31:08 Nikola Topic’s potential impact and development
36:44 Houston Rockets: Contender or pretender?

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