A recent survey conducted by ESPN saw a group of NBA insiders rank Oklahoma City eighth on its list of the best managed teams in the league. The Miami Heat sit atop the rankings while the Orlando Magic came in at the bottom of the list.
Miami has been a winning organization for almost all of the 21st century. The Heat have made six NBA Finals appearances in the past 16 years, taking home titles in 2006, 2012 and 2013. Orlando, on the other hand, has struggled to find a team identity since the departure of Dwight Howard, who led the team to one of its two finals appearances in 2009.
OKC, entering its 15th season as an NBA franchise, earned its ranking based on an incredible run of success in the 2010s. From the 2009-10 season to 2019-20, the Thunder missed the playoffs only once.
Oklahoma City shocked the league in its early years, notching a playoff appearance in the team’s second season, and a finals appearance in the organization’s fourth year in OKC. This stretch also saw General Manager Sam Presti draft three future MVPs, two of which would win the award while playing for the Thunder.
OKC’s front office is adored by Thunder fans, and the team makes a strong effort to give back to the Oklahoma community. The players and coaches visit historic, meaningful locations such as the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum and the Greenwood Rising Museum.
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The team also has multiple community engagement programs, including the Thunder Fellows, an educational program aimed at helping underserved youth in Oklahoma. Thanks to the squad’s local involvement, the fan base’s love for the team grew stronger, and the Thunder were able to sell out the Paycom Center for 350 consecutive games.
Former Oklahoma City players have also praised the Thunder organization. “First class organization from top to bottom,” big man Kendrick Perkins said on Showtime Basketball’s Forgotten Seasons Podcast. “Their practice facility is one of the best in the NBA, they have a great medical staff… They pour money back into their players. In OKC you’re going to be in great shape, you’re going to eat healthy. They do everything possible to make sure that they put you on the court to put you in a position to be successful.”
Recently, the Thunder have received harsh criticism from fans and media members around the league, even going so far as to be called “the black eye of the NBA”. If Oklahoma City’s rebuild goes as Presti and the rest of the OKC front office has mapped out, then the team will be back on the mountain top in the next decade.
Presti began his tenure in OKC with the franchise at the bottom of the NBA totem pole in a city that was relatively new to the professional sports market. The Thunder’s General Manager has already helped his team climb out of this position once, creating optimism that he can do so once again.
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