OKC Thunder vs. the CBA: Can Sam Presti and company come out on top?

There has been plenty said about the Oklahoma City Thunder and its teambuilding strategy, even after Sam Presti and company won the NBA Finals.

After signing stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren to contract extensions, social media was abuzz, pondering if the team could afford the trio long term. After the Celtics disbanded most of Boston's 2024 title roster over the summer, many observers online noted that the salary cap's second and third aprons could be an issue for OKC.

While analysts have laregly dispelled those concerns, executives around the league reportedly believe that the NBA's next Collective Bargaining Agreement could also be a challenge for the Thunder.

"I was talking to an executive the other day," ESPN's Brian Windhorst said on a recent podcast episode. "He goes, 'What are the great rivalries in the game today? ... I know what the next great rivalry in the NBA is. ... Thunder versus the CBA.'"

The NBA's current Collective Bargaining Agreement took effect on July 1, 2023, and will run through the 2029-30 season. This gives the Thunder five more seasons until the next CBA could take effect and potentially impact the team's roster.

Even with a new CBA looming, though, Oklahoma City seems well-equipped to handle whatever changes could be levied upon the NBA Player Association's previous agreement. Along with a general manager in Presti who is very calculated in his decision making, OKC's large stash of draft picks should help consistently infuse the roster with young talent on cheap contracts and give the team assets to make trades.

On the same podcast that Windhorst mentioned the conversation, cohost Tim Bontemps pushed back.

"They're not even going to be in the repeater tax until the new CBA comes online in 2030," Bontemps said. "They weren't in the tax last year, when they won (the championship). They're not in the tax this year, when they could win again. Yes, they have (Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams and Holmgren) on max contracts going forward. However, they have draft picks out the wazoo to have young, cheap talent around them. They have great contracts on their books otherwise, and they have flexibility on their higher priced veterans, namely Lu Dort and Isaiah Hartenstein, to manuever their books around that way. I think they're better set up than any other team, frankly, to deal with the CBA."

Time will tell how a new CBA will impact OKC and the rest of the league, but for now, the Thunder seem to be situated better than most other teams around the NBA.

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