The Oklahoma City Thunder had one more chance to extend their title defense. One more game at home. One more opportunity to get back to the NBA Finals.
It did not happen. The San Antonio Spurs beat Oklahoma City 111-103 in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals, ending the Thunder’s season and sending Victor Wembanyama to the Finals against the New York Knicks. Now the Thunder enter an offseason that feels more complicated than it did a week ago.
They still have a championship core. They still have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and one of the deepest collections of assets in the league.
But after Game 7, they also have a Chet Holmgren question that is getting louder. And SGA’s response might have just added to it.
SGA Sends Message on Offseason
SGA was asked after the loss whether he planned to weigh in on Oklahoma City’s offseason decisions.
“I will give zero input, I will let Sam Presti, the greatest GM ever, do his job.” SGA said.
It was a show of trust in the man who built everything around him. But it landed at a complicated time.
The Thunder just lost a Game 7 at home. Wembanyama was named Western Conference Finals MVP. Holmgren had one of the quietest games of his young career. Oklahoma City’s asset chest is still full. So when SGA said he would stay out of it, the spotlight did not disappear.
It shifted to Presti.
— Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on the offseason.
(h/t @ohnohedidnt24)
The Holmgren Debate Gets Louder
Holmgren is still one of the most important pieces for Oklahoma City. One difficult playoff game does not erase his defensive range, his shooting, or the role he played in building a championship identity in the first place.
But Game 7 changed the temperature.
He finished with just four points while Wembanyama controlled the game on the other end, closing out the defending champions on their own floor and collecting the series MVP in the process. That contrast is what drove the conversation afterward.
Many around the league argued that Oklahoma City has spent years stockpiling assets and that the time to use them has arrived. The name attached to that idea? Giannis Antetokounmpo, with Holmgren and draft capital as the centerpiece of a potential deal.
That proposal cuts straight to the hardest question facing the Thunder this summer. Is Holmgren part of the solution to the Spurs problem, or is he the most valuable piece they have to trade for one?
Presti will have to answer it.
GettyOklahoma City Thunder star Chet Holmgren immediately became the subject of trade tumors after a disappointing performance in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals against the San Antonio Spurs.
What the Thunder Have to Weigh
Oklahoma City does not need to panic.
The Thunder did not lose in the first round. They did not collapse as a fringe contender. They lost Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals as the defending champion, with Jalen Williams sidelined by a hamstring injury for the series finale. That context does not erase the result, but it shapes how the offseason should be read.
SGA remains one of the best players in the game. Holmgren is still young, skilled, and not easily replaced. The asset base Presti has assembled gives Oklahoma City options that most franchises would trade their futures to have.
But Wembanyama is no longer just a future problem. He is a current one. San Antonio has already gone through Oklahoma City once, and internal growth alone may not be enough to flip that matchup.
That is where the Giannis idea becomes genuinely tempting. Pairing Gilgeous-Alexander with Antetokounmpo would give the Thunder a physical force, a proven champion, and a direct answer to what San Antonio can create. It would also cost them one of their foundational pieces and years of accumulated capital.
That is the tension Presti now has to sit with.
GettyShai Gilgeous-Alexander #2 and Chet Holmgren #7 of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Final Word for SGA and the Thunder
Gilgeous-Alexander said he will give zero input. That was a show of trust. It was also a reminder that Oklahoma City’s biggest decisions now belong entirely to Presti.
Holmgren’s Game 7 does not define his future. But it added weight to a debate that was probably coming regardless. The Spurs are here. Wembanyama is here. The West is moving fast.
The Thunder have spent years building options.
Now they have to decide how many of them to use.
SGA’s Viral Response Sparks Major Chet Holmgren Questions After Game 7