With the 2026-27 regular season right around the corner, the Oklahoma City Thunder enter the year as a popular title pick. Even after their summer of cost-cutting moves, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams remain one of the most successful and decorated trios in the league.
The Thunder had a league-best 64-18 this past regular season. But fell short of their back-to-back ambitions in the 2026 Western Conference Finals. Injuries played a large part in that. But that's in the past. Can't change anything about it now.
Now that the offseason is behind us and we're looking ahead to another nine-month marathon, let's rewind on OKC's biggest moves and preview what most folks believe the Thunder will do this upcoming year.
To get
ready for the upcoming season, Thunder Wire conducted a 16-question fan survey. A total of 1,145 Thunder fans participated. Not every question was answered, though. The response totals for each question can be seen at the top left corner of the pie charts.
One question was about Mark Daigneault. Most are stoked to have him as the Thunder head coach. Nearly two-thirds of voters handed him an A grade for the job he's done. With one NBA championship under his belt, he's about to start his seventh season in OKC.
This shouldn't be a surprise. Daigneault is viewed as one of the best head coaches in the NBA. He's somehow mastered both player development and contending for titles. Usually, it's one or the other in that profession. But he's the sharpest mind in franchise history. As long as he's interested, he'll stick to this job.
Since Daigneault took over, he's called all of the right shots. He's tied to the hip with Gilgeous-Alexander as one of the best NBA superstar and head coach tandems. And with mostly the same staff, the Thunder have enjoyed some rare continuity. It's been mostly the same group of assistants that helped OKC go from a 20-win team to a near-70-win machine.
The Thunder hope Daigneault can work his magic this upcoming year. He'll have a few developmental projects to work on at the end of OKC's bench. It will also be interesting to see if they remain the league-best defense. That side of the ball has helped them win one NBA championship and almost another.
Maybe it's time to change up some of OKC's identity? The Thunder have mostly relied on Gilgeous-Alexander's shot-creation superpowers over the last few seasons. That's a luxury you get to enjoy with a two-time MVP winner and a walking 30-point bucket. But the NBA playoffs have shown they need more creativity and others to pitch in.
That's where others like Williams, Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain and Cason Wallace can come in. It'll be interesting to see if the Thunder slide a little bit more into being an offensive-leaning team. Rather than going all out on defense and relying on talent on offense. With the roster going through some changes for the first time in a few years, that could require a change in philosophy.
After all, the Thunder must stay a cutting-edge organization. It's the only way to remain at a competitive advantage. After a couple of years as a defense-first, NBA-superstar-carrying team, they can't let the rest of the league figure them out. It's all about keeping the opponent guessing. Daigneault is innovative in that regard.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: 2026 OKC Thunder fan survey results: Mark Daigneault viewed as top head coach
