The OKC Thunder breezed their way through the 2024-25 regular season, as they tied for the fifth-most wins in NBA history with 68 and set the record for largest average point differential at 12.9.
Now, one round down in the 2025 NBA Playoffs, it seems that this level of dominance has flawlessly carried on over, as Oklahoma City became the first team to advance to the semifinals this year and did so via sweep fashion, besting the 48-win Memphis Grizzlies in four games by an elite average point differential of 19.5.
As they await word on who their round two opponent may be, the dormant Thunder have only managed to strengthen their status as favorites to take home this year's Larry O'Brien Trophy, with the oddsmakers giving them a league-leading +150 chance of doing so.
However, despite this vote of confidence, there are still a few legitimate threats to an OKC title run making waves during these early stages of the postseason.
In fact, Monday night's down-to-the-wire Game 4 showdown between the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets served as a reminder that there are teams out there that are far more battle-tested than Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and company, with the Dubs, in particular, showing a specific championship-level character trait that Oklahoma City has yet to display.
Thunder need to prove they have dogs on their roster like Warriors do
Despite getting off to a rather slow start to the contest and trailing by seven heading into halftime, this Warriors squad never seemed to cower.
Frankly, the adversity and challenge only seemed to motivate some of the club's core players, particularly the likes of Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler, who turned things up in a major way during the pivotal final two periods.
From the former's elite defensive efforts to the latter's offensive brilliance that led all players in second-half scoring (23 points on 66.7 percent shooting from the field), this particular duo reminded the masses of the "dog," as Green has previously put it, that they have in them.
Such a characteristic can and has regularly proven to be a major benefit for championship-contending teams.
It's why Butler was able to exceed expectations with a Miami Heat team that saw two NBA Finals runs throughout his five-and-a-half-year tenure and is a major reason why Green has been one of the driving forces behind Golden State's four-championship dynasty.
Having a proven track record and familiarity with overcoming in-game struggles and hardships, particularly in the playoffs, is a major luxury for a title-hungry squad.
Even with their dominance throughout the season, this Thunder core simply has yet to prove that they possess such a quality. In a way, their ability to blow out opponents has somewhat done them a disservice, as they actually lack experience playing through closely contested, high-stakes games.
Though it may have been truly impressive, their historic comeback over a Ja Morant-less Grizzlies team in Game 3 doesn't truly scratch this itch.
Hopefully during their upcoming semifinals series and/ or beyond that they can present signs of having this type of character trait that helped the Warriors claw their way back in Game 4 and, ultimately, go up 3-1 against the higher-seeded Rockets.
Until they show this kind of attribute, despite the current odds, it's safe to say that they will still be doubted by experts and analysts as sure-fire championship favorites.