Oklahoma City ThunderOklahoma City redistribute roles around their core
Oklahoma City keep their core but reshuffle their perimeter rotation. Dated roster, projected starting five, strengths, risks and the Thunder's first game.
Listen to this story
Synthetic English voice · 8 min 00 s
Oklahoma City keep Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, but have changed part of the supporting cast around them. After the departures of Luguentz Dort, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins, Mark Daigneault must redistribute roles across the perimeter lines. The Thunder still have the means to target the title; their new rotation must show how it will defend and create when their first options are contained.
The starting point: 64 wins, then a conference final lost
The 2025–2026 regular-season record remains that of a top-tier side: 64 wins, 18 defeats and first place in the Western Conference. Oklahoma City scored 119.0 points per game and conceded 107.9. That gap of 11.1 points speaks to sustained dominance, though it does not by itself capture the difficulties of a playoff series. The run ended in the Western Conference final, in the seventh game against San Antonio.
Daigneault therefore keeps a solid base rather than a group to rebuild from scratch. The challenge is more specific: preserve the core's strengths while replacing several players who filled different roles. A frontline perimeter defender, a shooter and a versatile connector are not necessarily replaced by the same player.
per game
per game
per game
per game
The moves: a new split of perimeter minutes
Dort and Aaron Wiggins have joined Atlanta, Joe has gone to Detroit and Branden Carlson to Portland. Aday Mara, Bennett Stirtz and Otega Oweh arrive through the draft. Mara adds a young centre, Stirtz a ball-handling option and Oweh a perimeter profile to develop. These arrivals do not guarantee immediate minutes: their place will depend on the combinations chosen and on how they adapt.
Jared McCain is also an option in this reshuffle, but he should not be mistaken for a summer signing: he arrived in February 2026. Alongside Ajay Mitchell and Cason Wallace, he can offer more solutions with the ball. The question will be who plays alongside Gilgeous-Alexander, then who runs the offence when the point guard leaves the floor.
- →Aday MaraAday Mara · 2026 draft
- →Bennett StirtzBennett Stirtz · 2026 draft
- →Otega OwehOtega Oweh · 2026 draft
- ←Luguentz Dort · Atlanta
- ←Aaron Wiggins · Atlanta
- ←Isaiah Joe · Detroit
- ←Branden Carlson · Portland
The scoring of the three core players
Per-game averages, 2025–26 regular season. Three selected core players, not an exhaustive ranking of the squad. Sample sizes differ.
Gilgeous-Alexander the lead creator; Williams and Holmgren key supporting playmakers
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Gilgeous-Alexander finished the 2025–2026 regular season averaging 31.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 6.6 assists per game over 68 appearances. That output gives the offence a concrete starting point. Our reading of the task is to give him outlets before the defence forces a possession that depends entirely on his final move. Moving the ball, getting it back after a cut or letting a teammate attack a mismatch are possibilities to watch, not habits already guaranteed.
Jalen Williams comes off 33 regular-season games, at 17.1 points and 5.5 assists per game. He can provide a second initiator and attack the space opened up by his point guard, without presuming a full season at that level. Holmgren offers a different geometry: his presence near the rim and his ability to move away from it can alter opposing help defence. Isaiah Hartenstein keeps a different role, tied more to screens, hand-offs and interior presence. The value of these profiles will lie in offering several answers to the same defence.
2025–26 regular season. These figures describe the past season and do not predict the coming one.
The projected starting five and the options off the bench
Our season projection has Gilgeous-Alexander, Wallace, Jalen Williams, Holmgren and Hartenstein starting. That is an SNA hypothesis, subject to availability, and not a starting five announced for the opener. Wallace would carry greater responsibility against the opposing ball-handler; Jalen Williams would share the creation; the two big men would bring complementary functions around the rim.
Alex Caruso, Mitchell, McCain and Jaylin Williams offer alternatives for the second unit and for closing lineups. Caruso can strengthen defensive combinations; Mitchell and McCain can take possessions on themselves; Jaylin Williams is another interior option. Kenrich Williams allows the size of certain lineups to be altered. The young players, including Mara and Stirtz, will have to earn their place in this group. The bench pecking order remains a projection of roles, not a promise of playing time.
Bench contributors — projected roles
Unofficial season projection; neither a guaranteed opening line-up nor a final pecking order.
The three-point shooting of the three core players
2025–2026 regular season. Three selected players with at least ten games and one attempt per game. Team benchmark: 36.5%. Past shooting accuracy does not predict that of 2026–2027.
The roster as of 17 October 2026, by position
This end-of-camp snapshot contains 21 players. The groupings below describe their possible functions, with versatile profiles. It includes development contracts and end-of-camp players: it is not the final opening-night list. Brooks Barnhizer, Josh Dix and Otega Oweh are on two-way contracts, splitting time between the NBA and the G League. Christoph Tilly, Lamar Wilkerson, Nate Johnson and Dariq Whitehead are in the end-of-camp group, with no guaranteed role in the rotation.
21 players: 18 profiles below and 3 other end-of-camp players
| Player | Status | Pts | Reb | Ast | 3PT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Point guards and guards | |||||
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 31.1 | 4.3 | 6.6 | 38.6 % | |
| Cason Wallace | – | – | – | – | |
| Ajay Mitchell | – | – | – | – | |
| Jared McCain | – | – | – | – | |
| Alex Caruso | – | – | – | – | |
| Bennett Stirtz | – | – | – | – | |
| Nikola Topić | – | – | – | – | |
| Josh Dix | Two-way | – | – | – | – |
| Otega Oweh | Two-way | – | – | – | – |
| Forwards and utility players | |||||
| Jalen Williams | 17.1 | 4.6 | 5.5 | 29.9 % | |
| Kenrich Williams | – | – | – | – | |
| Brooks Barnhizer | Two-way | – | – | – | – |
| Big men | |||||
| Chet Holmgren | 17.1 | 8.9 | 1.7 | 36.2 % | |
| Isaiah Hartenstein | – | – | – | – | |
| Jaylin Williams | – | – | – | – | |
| Thomas Sorber | – | – | – | – | |
| Aday Mara | – | – | – | – | |
| Christoph Tilly | End of camp | – | – | – | – |
Grouped by role; versatile profiles. 2025–2026 averages for the three documented core players; "–" = figure not verified here. Training-camp group, not the final opening-night list.
Robert McCray V, waived on 6 October, is not on this list. Andrew Holifield, Anthony Pritchard and Zhaire Smith, waived on 16 October, are also excluded. Individual situations may still change before the opener. Being in the group does not confirm medical fitness; preparation statuses do not amount to an announcement of availability for the first game.
Strengths and risks: keep the defence locked in, find new connectors
The Thunder can lean on the continuity of their core and on several combinations of size and mobility. The defensive challenge will be to spread the duties Dort leaves behind without multiplying the help that frees up a shooter. An effective first line of pressure can allow the big men to stay better positioned; conversely, a one-on-one lost too early can pull the whole defence out of shape.
The offensive risk lies in possessions where the first advantage disappears. The departures of Joe and Wiggins hand more responsibility to other perimeter players. It will be important to track the quality of the shots created and the decisions after the first pass, rather than draw a conclusion from one night of hot shooting. Minutes without Gilgeous-Alexander will be another test of how responsibilities are shared.
The strengths
- The core group of key players stays in place.
- Several creation options.
- Complementary frontcourt pairings.
The work to do
- Redistribute the perimeter defensive assignments.
- Create after a modest early advantage.
- Build sequences without Gilgeous-Alexander.
The ambition: going all the way to the title
Aiming for the Finals and the title is an ambition consistent with the retained core and last season's record. Our reading guarantees neither a ranking nor a run. The first indicator will be the new rotation's ability to maintain a solid collective defence while offering several ways to launch the offence. The season will also give time to tell durable solutions from combinations that merely work against a particular opponent.
Aiming for the title is consistent; the new rotation has to turn it into a collective effort.
The core players who have been retained provide a foundation. How responsibilities are shared must back up that ambition.
The first regular-season date
Oklahoma City begin at San Antonio on 21 October at 2:30 a.m. Brazzaville time, which is the evening of 20 October in the United States. The Thunder then host Denver on 23 October at 2:30 a.m. Brazzaville time. These regular-season games are separate from the preseason. See the first-game page, the Oklahoma City team page and the NBA calendar on SNA.
Wednesday 21 October 2026 at 02:30, Brazzaville time · match centre
- The team’s live schedule appears here.
Countdown to tip-off.