The OKC Thunder looked virtually unstoppable during the early stages of the 2025-26 campaign, as they went 24-1 through their first 25 games of action while ranking first in defensive rating and fifth in offensive rating throughout this stretch.
However, since their NBA Cup semifinal loss to the San Antonio Spurs back in early December, they've seemingly fallen into a somewhat vulnerable state, going 12-7 over this span and enduring their lone two losing streaks of the year.
Now, despite this recent slide, the odds-makers still have Oklahoma City as the heavy favorites to win the 2026 NBA Finals at +105, and virtually everyone agrees with this standing.
Simply put, there's a case to be made that, aside from injuries, the only thing that could hold the Thunder back from a repeat championship run is if they allow themselves to be bogged down by shooting slumps.
Thunder can't afford to let shooting slumps linger for multiple games
After establishing themselves as one of the most consistent and efficient long-range shooting teams in the association during the two seasons coming in, Oklahoma City has slipped up in a significant way here in 2025-26.
Kicking off the season with the second-worst shooting percentage on the year (29.6) through November 1, the Thunder began to surge up toward the top rank in this area of play from November 2 through December 12 with a 41.2 percent clip, before ultimately going back down to a 26-ranked percentage of 33.6 from December 13 onward.
At first, these perimeter woes didn't seem to have much effect on their ability to pull out wins, as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and company were still undefeated even while residing near the bottom of the league.
However, since their in-season tournament follies, there has been a direct correlation between their success rate in the record department and their performance from beyond the arc.
In their 12 wins throughout this month and change of action, the Thunder have shot 35.2 percent from deep while dropping to a putrid 30.8 percent in losses.
Unfortunately, their perimeter defense hasn't made it all that easy to overcome these struggles, as Oklahoma City has allowed their opponents to shoot a highly efficient 37.7 from deep over this stretch and 37.2 on the season as a whole.
From their second-round demise against the Dallas Mavericks in the 2024 postseason to having to go the distance against the Denver Nuggets in last year's Western Conference semifinals, having a discrepancy in long-range shooting against their opponents has never been something the Thunder have been able to easily navigate.
Hopefully, this team can find a way to put their shooting troubles behind them or, at the very least, hold their matchups to mediocre showings from distance themselves, otherwise winning a second straight title may not be as likely as many are currently thinking.