Last season, the OKC Thunder snapped their multi-year playoff drought and advanced to their first semifinal round since 2016. This high-end success suggests that Mark Daigneault's young squad was already knocking on the door toward becoming a legitimate threat to contend for the illustrious Larry O'Brien Trophy.
Now, heading into 2024-25, Oklahoma City is looking to kick said door off its hinges and thrust itself into the upper echelon of the league's elite organizations.
While we still have several months separating now and the season's tip-off, on Thursday the NBA is set to give fans an early glimpse at how the campaign will be structured, as they are slated to release the official schedule of all 30 teams in the association.
Opening night matchups OKC Thunder fans would love to see
Though it's largely understood that how a team finishes their 82 game regular season stretch is more vital to a title-run than how they start, kicking things off on the right foot should always coveted.
Be it to stir up excitement among the franchise's faithful followers or to get momentum going for players early on, starting off the new year hot would be just what the doctor ordered for OKC, and there are a few teams, in particular, fans would likely love to see the Thunder face on opening night.
Phoenix Suns
Though we may be closing in on nine years since he last suited up for the OKC Thunder, a matchup against Kevin Durant always seems to be the gift that keeps on giving.
In total, the two parties have squared off against one another on 17 separate occasions. While Durant may hold the edge in the head-to-head record (8-7), Oklahoma City has come away victorious from the majority of their most recent bouts, as they're 5-2 over their last seven showdowns and went an undefeated 3-0 in 2023-24.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams led the charge in the Thunder's thrilling win over the Suns ⚡️
— NBA (@NBA) November 13, 2023
SGA: 35 PTS, 7 REB, 59% FG
Jalen: 31 PTS, 3 3PM, 68% FG pic.twitter.com/Q7fPbYl9VC
Last we saw Durant play against his former employers, the Suns were blown out by a whopping 25 points at Paycom Center while their new franchise Slim Reaper in Chet Holmgren went on to drop 20 points on a whopping 60.0 percent shooting from the field.
Their recent successes, coupled with the always "must watch" narrative that comes with a KD v. OKC matchup only would indicate that starting things off in this way could be one of the more entertaining ways to get 2024-25 started.