Beyond the Box: Why OKC's Franchise Winning Percentage Matters
The Oklahoma City Thunder were incredibly successful over their first iteration.
Before the great teardown began, the Thunder weren’t just amongst the winningest franchises in the NBA, but in all of North American professional sports.
In 2019, OKC was rated as the fourth most winningest franchise in the country behind just the New England Patriots, the San Antonio Spurs and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
But Oklahoma City’s winning ways were more than just a free agency pitch, they’ve become one of the core philosophies of the franchise.
Winning at a high level is important because it opens one of the only two doors open to one of the smallest market franchises in the NBA.
General manager Sam Presti’s primary objective in OKC will always be to build through the NBA Draft. That’s the given.
However, today’s NBA moves at breakneck speeds. Stars sign contracts one day, and just years later find themselves yearning for a change of scenery.
The Thunder have had their fare share of disgruntled stars make their way through Oklahoma City, but none of a higher profile than Paul George.
Presti was able to put together a package of young assets and draft picks to acquire the All-Star from the Indiana Pacers, immediately increasing OKC’s ceiling.
It was a gamble to be sure, as George only had one year left on his deal and made no promises to the Thunder. And that’s where Oklahoma City’s winning percentage comes in.
OKC’s commitment to winning is the franchise’s best chance of pulling coups like getting George to spurn Los Angeles and sign on for more time in Oklahoma.
One thing supersedes big time markets and marquee destinations — a championship contender.
The Thunder have to maintain their high levels of winning to continue to convince players around the league that they can stay in OKC and win at a high clip. Presti has the draft picks to maneuver in the trade market over the next five years, but if players refuse to re-sign with the Thunder, it will turn into a never-ending process of remolding and rebuilding Oklahoma City’s roster.
But if OKC can again catch lightening in a bottle with their rebuild, they can continue to raise the ceiling of the franchise and open doors previously closed in free agency.
Want to join the discussion? Click here to become a member of the message board community today!
Like SI Thunder on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news.
