The Thunder Should Not Overreact After Their Playoff Exit

For most of this NBA season, it felt like a foregone conclusion that the Oklahoma City Thunder were going to be back in the NBA Finals and be competing for a second straight championship.

After all, this was a team that came into the season as the defending champions. They started the year on an incredible run, opening the season at 24-1 and conversations began about whether they could challenge the historic 73-win record set by the Golden State Warriors during the 2015-16 season.

Everything seemed to be falling into place.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander captured his second consecutive MVP award. Chet Holmgren made an All-NBA team. Their supporting cast continued to develop, with players like Alex Caruso, Cason Wallace, and Ajay Mitchell all stepping up throughout the year.

The only real question mark was Jalen Williams.

After emerging as an All-Star and All-NBA caliber player last season, Williams dealt with multiple injuries throughout the year. But it never felt like a major concern.

I mean, the Thunder were winning games, held the number one-seed in the Western Conference standings for the entire season, and appeared focused on keeping their roster healthy for another championship run.

However, the first real questions about the Thunder started to come up in December when they ran into a problem they eventually never solved all season long.

The San Antonio Spurs.

Every time Oklahoma City played San Antonio, it felt like the same story. The Thunder simply had no answer for Victor Wembanyama.

Throughout the year, it became increasingly obvious that Wembanyama presented matchup problems unlike anyone else in the league. While many expected Oklahoma City's experience to eventually prevail in a playoff series, that's not what happened.

Instead, the Spurs went into Oklahoma City and won Game 7 on the road, ending the Thunder's title defense and advancing to the NBA Finals.

Now, as expected, the overreactions have begun.

The internet has already started saying that Oklahoma City needs another star. Some believe Gilgeous-Alexander needs another elite shot creator beside him. Others think the Thunder need a more reliable second scoring option. NBA twitter wants to trade Holmgren after his struggles in the series. Some are even suggesting Oklahoma City should move on from Williams because of his injury concerns.

And of course, there are the inevitable superstar trade proposals.

Should they cash in their mountain of draft picks and young talent to acquire another star? Should they go all-in for Giannis Antetokounmpo? Should they consider a deal involving Anthony Davis?

My answer is simple.

Absolutely not.

The Thunder shouldn't overreact.

I understand the temptation. Losing as the heavy favourite is frustrating. They didn't exepct their season to end this early. Getting knocked out one win away from another Finals appearance hurts.

But, as always, context matters.

The biggest issue for Oklahoma City in this series wasn't a lack of talent. It was health.

Williams, who is the second-best player on the roster, was unavailable for much of the series. That left Gilgeous-Alexander carrying an enormous offensive burden. By the end of the series, he looked exhausted.

I honestly believe that if Williams is healthy, the Thunder win this series and the championship.

Even having a healthy Ajay Mitchell available could have made a significant difference. He developed into one of the better scoring options on the roster this season and would've helped ease some of the offensive pressure.

Instead, Oklahoma City became overly reliant on Gilgeous-Alexander, and eventually it caught up with them.

That's why I don't think the answer is swinging for the fences.

Trading for Giannis sounds great on paper, but there are legitimate concerns. He's getting older, he's expensive, and injuries have become a recurring issue. The same can be said for Anthony Davis.

Sure, Antetokounmpo and Davis might match up with Wembanyama better defensively than Holmgren does today. But if Davis or Antetokounmpo aren't healthy in May and June, what difference does it make?

Personally, I'd rather have Holmgren and see if this experience can motivate him to take his game to another level.

He's younger, still developing, and despite his struggles in this series, I still believe in his long-term future on this team and there's no need to limit your championship window by bringing in an older star.

What Oklahoma City can't afford to do is make a panic move.

We've seen plenty of teams overreact after playoff disappointments. The Damian Lillard trade didn't work out the way the Milwaukee Bucks hoped. Kevin Durant's recent moves around the league haven't exactly produced the desired results either.

Just because a star player becomes available doesn't mean you have to be the team that empties the vault to acquire him.

If I'm General Manager Sam Presti, I stay patient.

Maybe you use some of your draft capital to move up in the draft and add another young, cost-controlled talent. Maybe you look for additional shooting. Maybe you make a few smaller moves around the margins.

But you don't blow up a championship-caliber core.

This team was one win away from returning to the NBA Finals.

That's not a roster problem.

I also wouldn't be surprised if Oklahoma City approaches the regular season differently next year. Being the No. 1 seed three consecutive years is incredibly difficult, and maintaining that level of intensity year after year eventually takes a toll.

I still believe the Thunder have the deepest roster in basketball.

I still believe Sam Presti is the smartest general manager in the league.

And I still believe Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the two or three best players in the world.

Don't panic.

Don't force a Giannis trade.

Don't trade for Anthony Davis.

Don't make a move you'll regret simply because you're frustrated after one disappointing playoff exit.

Get healthy. Get rested. Add some shooting if possible. And run it back with this core.

The Thunder are still one of the NBA's premier organizations, and I fully expect them to be right back in the Western Conference Finals conversation next season.

And this won't be the last we hear from them.