After their historic top-seeded season in which they won their first playoff series in nearly a decade, the OKC Thunder enter the 2024-25 season with tremendous expectations.

With MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and rising young talents Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren leading the way, as well as a number of standout role players spread across a rotation that easily runs up to ten players, Oklahoma City is considered a legitimate threat Victory in this year’s NBA Finals.

Even oddsmakers have them as the second-best bet to win the Larry O’Brien Trophy this season, behind only the reigning champion Boston Celtics.

While this club may currently have the youngest roster in the league heading into the first week of training camp, it is evident that they are in winning mode with the offseason additions of veteran contributors Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein.

And while some may believe that winning a title at the end of the year isn’t the only way for the Thunder to have a successful season, as they apparently still have many years left to compete for ultimate glory, Kendrick Perkins is of ESPN believes that it is time to fold or shut down the franchise.

On a recent episode of NBA Today, the former 14-year big man and NBA champion turned pundit discussed the goals for the Thunder in the upcoming season, emphasizing that they are due to their incredibly well-rounded roster composition and two-way skillset There seems to be no obvious excuse for them not making it to at least the title round by the end of the year.

“The expectation is that we can do it! At least make it to the NBA Finals. In my opinion, they are the only team in the Western Conference that ticks all the boxes. So what does this entail? … This is your team. “Year to get to the NBA Finals, I don’t want to hear anything else. Perkins said.

Perkins’ comments may have been blunt, but they have merit.

Honestly, the only generally accepted reason why people were so accepting of Oklahoma City’s second-round loss to the Dallas Mavericks last season was due to two things: lack of size and lack of playoff experience.

This summer, GM Sam Presti seemingly addressed those two weaknesses head-on with the additions of Caruso (won a title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020) and Hartenstein (measures 7 feet, 249 pounds). At least on the surface, Perkins’ suspicion that the Thunder are out of excuses appears to be confirmed.

While the championship window is likely to be open for this team for many years to come, securing their first title is undoubtedly the most important task at the moment. For Perkins, there is no reason why it can’t happen this season.