Most of the NBA world expected the Thunder to take a step forward this season as their core coalesced around Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, but few anticipated Oklahoma City earning the top seed in the West.
In fact, history indicated the Thunder had little chance of landing the No. 1 seed. No team as young as Oklahoma City had ever finished at the top of either conference. A deep Western Conference that included the reigning champions as well as star-laden teams such as the Suns and Clippers made such a run even more unlikely.
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault earned Coach of the Year honors for his work overseeing a 17-win improvement, but questions still linger about whether Oklahoma City’s youth is too much to overcome to win a championship.
Here’s a look at the age of the Thunder roster and where it would rank among the youngest teams to win the NBA Finals.
MORE: Why Thunder and LeBron James are perfect match
The current Thunder roster has an average age of exactly 25 years old. However, their core group of players is even younger. Oklahoma City’s starting five has an average age of 23.2. That mark was just 22.6 years old a month ago, but Chet Holmgren, Luguentz Dort and Jalen Williams have all had birthdays since the start of April.
The average age of the roster was elevated when 34-year-old Gordon Hayward and 32-year-old Mike Muscala were brought in midseason, but Hayward plays limited minutes while Muscala has largely remained out of Daigneault’s rotation.
Weighted by playing time, the Thunder had an average age of 23.9 years old this season. That made them the youngest team in NBA history to earn a No. 1 seed. The average age of Oklahoma City’s current rotation, which has hovered at about nine players in the playoffs, is just 22.9 years old.
The Thunder received attention during the NCAA Tournament when North Carolina’s experienced roster rivaled the average age of Oklahoma City’s starting lineup. As of late March, the Tar Heels starters had an average age of 22.2 while the Thunder starters had an average age of 22.6.
That says something about the emphasis on experience in college basketball, but it also underlines how remarkable it is that the Thunder are one of the best teams in the NBA while relying so heavily on young players.
Oklahoma City’s top eight scorers are all 25 or younger. Gordon Hayward (5.3 ppg) is the highest-scoring Thunder player over the age of 25.
MORE: How Chet Holmgren played every game after missing rookie season
The 1976-77 Trail Blazers are easily the youngest team to win the NBA Finals, by weighted age (24.2). The Thunder had a weighted age of 23.9 this season, though with three core players having birthdays after the end of the regular season, there are different ways to interpret whether that figure would be different for a potential title run.
Of the 10 youngest teams to win the NBA Finals, only the 2014-15 Warriors, with an average age of 26.4, have done it this century. That means the Thunder are attempting to pull off a feat that is virtually unprecedented in the modern NBA as they continue to defy expectations.
