ESPN’s Zach Lowe published the 13th edition of his annual NBA tier groupings, his alternative to power rankings.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are grouped in the Happy To Lose tier, along with the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Utah Jazz and Indiana Pacers.
With the Thunder likely enduring another losing season, this grouping makes sense. The Thunder are one of the youngest teams in the league and that lack of experience and polished talent is usually a formula for a lot of losing lessons.
The loss of Chet Holmgren will only magnify that. Losing the No. 2 pick of the draft for an entire season is never a good indicator for wins.
“Man, was I excited to watch the Thunder before Holmgren’s injury. The Shai Gilgeous-Alexander/Josh Giddey/Luguentz Dort trio provides an interesting mix of skills, though it’s a little short on shooting. Tre Mann is a canny combo guard, and Kenrich Williams is the connector who nudges everyone in the right directions — Nick Collison 2.0. It’s cute NBA nerd knowledge that the Williams-Mike Muscala frontcourt walloped opponents last season in what amounts to meaningless sample size, but should a rebuilding team really want those two playing heavy minutes?”
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The Thunder will begin their season on Oct. 19 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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