OKC Thunder's No. 1 Defense Results From Quality Personnel

The 2024-25 Oklahoma City Thunder was defined primarily by defense. It allowed just 106.6 points per 100 possessions during the regular season (No. 1 in NBA) — 2.5 fewer than the No. 2 Orlando Magic.

A defense that results in 68 wins requires relentless effort and consistency. Oklahoma City registered the NBA's best defensive rating in October (91.3) and December (103.1), the second-best defensive rating in January (107.0) and March (108.4), the third-best defensive rating in November (106.0) and the fifth-best defensive rating in February (109.6). The Thunder's only average regular-season month, April (112.3), came with nothing left to play for.

The No. 1 overall seed restored its intensity for the postseason. Oklahoma City tallied a 97.6 defensive rating (No. 1 in first round) against the Memphis Grizzlies, a 103.9 defensive rating (No. 1 in second round) against the Denver Nuggets, a 111.7 defensive rating (No. 1 in Conference Finals) against the Minnesota Timberwolves and a 108.1 defensive rating against the Indiana Pacers during the NBA Finals.

The regular-season Thunder averaged 43.5 contested shots (No. 2 in NBA), 5.7 blocks (No. 2 in NBA), 21.4 deflections (No. 1 in NBA), 10.3 steals (No. 1 in NBA) and 21.8 points off turnovers (No. 1 in NBA).

The playoff Thunder averaged 45.5 contested shots (No. 2 in NBA), 5.7 blocks (T-No. 4 in NBA), 20.4 deflections (No. 1 in NBA), 10.7 steals (No. 1 in NBA) and 22.7 points off turnovers (No. 1 in NBA).

Oklahoma City compiled excellent team statistics with the right personnel and system. It boasts numerous defensive difference-makers, who supply quality rim protection, perimeter defense and everything in between. Utilizing active hands, making speedy rotations, exploiting passing lanes and providing timely help are second-nature tasks throughout the Thunder's depth chart.

This season, with an established unit, the Thunder will compete for more All-Defensive spots and Defensive Player of the Year.

There are a handful of reliable advanced metrics that measure a player's more nuanced defensive impact per 100 possessions. DunksAndThrees' estimated plus-minus approximates contributions with highly optimized statistics while adjusting for teammate quality, giving more context to raw plus-minus.

Basketball Index's LEBRON, or luck-adjusted estimate using a box prior regularized on-off, combines box score data with on-off impact and incorporates various adjustments.

Kostya Medvedovsky's daily plus-minus uses the DARKO system, which stands for daily adjusted and regressed Kalman optimized projections, to estimate updating player impact with machine learning techniques.

PBP Stats' on-off combinations show exactly how teams perform(ed) with or without a player on the court. This data ideally excludes low-leverage, or garbage-time, possessions.

The 2024-25 Defensive Player of the Year, Cleveland Cavaliers center-forward Evan Mobley, recorded a +1.6 defensive estimated plus-minus (No. 28 in NBA), a +1.70 defensive LEBRON (No. 20 in NBA) and a +1.1 defensive daily plus-minus (No. 75 in NBA) last season. The Cavaliers were 1.72 points per 100 possessions better on defense with Mobley than without Mobley.

Oklahoma City does not have much left to prove as a team, though its individual candidates have large shoes to fill.

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