When it comes to this reigning champion OKC Thunder squad, it's hard to pinpoint any specific areas of struggle.
After all, we're talking about a team that, while dealing with widespread injury woes and, in turn, a constantly changing rotation, still managed to win 68 games last season, registered the league's highest-ever point differential, and brought home the franchise's first Larry O'Brien Trophy.
However, even with this top-flight level of success, there are objectively still factors at play that prevent them from achieving flawless status.
To Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report, the biggest problem for Oklahoma City heading into the 2025-26 season is their lackluster long-range shooting under the bright lights of the playoffs.
Thunder have struggled mightily from long-range during NBA Playoffs
While the Thunder may have finished within the top 10 in three-point shooting percentage in both of the past two seasons and ranked sixth in three-point makes during last year's campaign, their efficiency has seemingly taken a complete nosedive once the postseason has arrived.
Since initially bursting onto the scene back in 2023-24 as a serious playoff threat, Oklahoma City's long-range numbers have gone from a 38.9 and 37.4 percent conversion rate during the regular season (first and sixth in the league, respectively) to a 35.6 and 33.8 percent clip (eighth-worst and fourth-worst, respectively).
To Buckley, this is believed to be influenced by the fact that some of the club's best shooters are off the bench role-players who, come the start of the postseason, see a reduced share of minutes and overall touches when on the hardwood.
Such a notion certainly seems to hold some serious merit when considering the fact that four of the club's top five three-point snipers from the regular season, Isaiah Joe (41.4 percent), Jaylin Williams (39.9 percent), Kenrich Williams (38.6 percent), and Aaron Wiggins (38.3 percent), all saw their minutes essentially cut in half during OKC's title run.
Fortunately for the Thunder, several of their core rotation members are rumored to have focused on upping their production and overall physicality on the offensive side of the ball this summer. Even Isaiah Hartenstein, the club's traditional, back-to-the-basket big man, suggested during this week's media day that he hopes to be more active from beyond the arc this coming season.
Though Buckley acknowledged in his piece that, as things currently stand, Oklahoma City could be argued as a "No Problems Dictated" type of team, in the end, he made sure to stress that "all teams could do something better."
Long-range shooting efficiency during the NBA Playoffs seems to be the area of play Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and company may want to hone in on heading into and throughout 2025-26.