NBA Cup Presents Different Challenge for OKC Thunder After Championship

The Thunder will tip off their NBA Cup slate on Friday night, but it has a different meaning this year.

Nov 5, 2025; Portland, Oregon, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) dribbles the ball past Portland Trail Blazers forward Toumani Camara (33) as teammate Thunder’s center/forward Isaiah Hartenstein (55) watches during the first half at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images | Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder are the NBA’s best team, and it will have another chance to prove that over the next few weeks.

After winning the NBA title last season, the Thunder came into 2025-26 as the favorite to repeat as NBA champions. Doing so would make them the first repeat champions since the Golden State Warriors in 2017-18. 

However, the Thunder are only nine games into the year, and another potential championship will have to wait over seven months. In the meantime, the Thunder have already shown glimpses of improvement over the first couple of weeks, getting out to an 8-1 start despite various injuries, including Jalen Williams, who has yet to play this season.

While the Thunder have had a successful start to the year, they will soon have a chance to make another early statement in the NBA Cup. On Friday night, the Thunder will tip off their Cup slate with a matchup on the road against the Sacramento Kings. 

Dec 17, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) and Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez (11) tip off during the 1st quarter of the Emirates NBA Cup championship game at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images | Candice Ward-Imagn Images

Last season, the Thunder went 3-1 in group play to advance to the knockout stage and eventually the Cup Final. Of course, the Thunder fell to the Milwaukee Bucks in that final game, but it didn’t count toward the Thunder’s historic 68-14 record.

While that loss stung for Oklahoma City, it gave the team some added motivation moving forward. Evidently, that motivation worked out quite well with the Thunder going on to win their first championship.

Entering the NBA Cup last season, the Thunder were just coming off a second-round loss to the Dallas Mavericks and were looking to prove they had improved after their one-seed campaign a year earlier. Battling through adversity, Oklahoma City managed to prove itself during its NBA Cup run and helped the team show how good it was early in the season.

This time around, the Thunder will be looking to send a different message to the league. After securing an NBA title, the Thunder are hoping to finish off their spectacular 2025 with one more accomplishment: the NBA Cup title.

While it might seem easy for a defending champion not to care too much about the Cup, the Thunder are always motivated, and they will likely be using their loss to the Bucks last season as motivation this time around.

With the Kings on the slate next, the Thunder will be looking to battle through their injuries and start another successful NBA Cup run in Sacramento on Friday night.

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