Oklahoma City Thunder unanimous favorites for 2026 NBA title
Oklahoma City Thunder players celebrate defeating the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the NBA Finals on Sunday at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City. Photo by Manuela Soldi/EPA-EFE
June 23 (UPI) -- Fresh off their first title, the Oklahoma City Thunder are unanimous favorites to repeat as NBA Finals champions in 2025-26, according to the oddsmakers.
FanDuel, DraftKings, ESPN Bet, Caesars, Bet MGM and Hard Rock Bet each listed the Thunder as favorites as of Monday morning, less than 12 hours after they beat the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals in Oklahoma City.
The Cleveland Cavaliers received the second-best odds at three sportsbooks. The New York Knicks received the third-best odds or were tied for the third-best odds at four sportsbooks. They received the second-best odds from Hard Rock Bet.
The Houston Rockets, who recently agreed to trade for All-Star forward Kevin Durant, also are considered a title contender. They received the second-best odds from DraftKings and Bet MGM and were a Top 4 favorite at each of the six sportsbooks.
The Minnesota Timberwolves, Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic, Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs and Golden State were among the other teams to receive Top 10 odds to win the title in 2026. The Pacers -- who lost star guard Tyrese Haliburton to an Achilles injury in Game 7 -- were not listed as Top 10 favorites by FanDuel or BetMGM. Haliburton's prognosis could likely swing those odds.
Conversely, the Thunder will return an elite core led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who on Sunday became the first player in 25 years to capture a scoring title along with regular-season and NBA Finals MVP honors in the same season, All-Star forward Jalen Williams and 7-foot-1 center Chet Holmgren.
The 2025-26 NBA regular season is set to tip off in October.
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What's also missing from Nash's resume after an 18-year career is an NBA championship, a key component in these GOAT conversations, no matter how much we like it or not. Statistically, Nash was a revolutionary passer, leading the league in assists five times while boasting a career average of 8.5 assists per game. His 10,335 career assists also has him ranked fifth all-time in that category. Gilgeous-Alexander's game, however, is far more complete. SGA combines elite scoring, averaging north of 24 points-per-game over his career so far — and dwarfing Nash's 14.3 PPG career average — to go along with efficient playmaking (over 5 assists per game), and elite defence as he ranks among the league leaders in steals and deflections over the past several seasons. Gilgeous-Alexander, unlike Nash, is regarded as a solid two-way player and a top-notch defender — earning All-Defensive Team votes from 2023 to 2025 and placing seventh in voting for the 2023-24 Defensive Player of the Year Award. 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But with so many accolades already under his belt, numbers much better than Nash across the boards aside from assists, and the leader of an upstart OKC team just entering its prime (like he himself is) its reasonable to expect that Gilgeous-Alexander will be unanimously considered the greatest basketball talent Canada ever produced when all is said and done, if he isn't leading that conversation already. The debate is already happening online, too, with plenty of fans and pundits floating the comparison and wondering if SGA has already claimed the title of Canada's greatest player. Is SGA the best Canadian basketball player of all time? I think he already surpasses Steve Nash. — Arpan (@arpan_on_BC) June 23, 2025 Ric Bucher's top 10 NBA point guards of all-time, assuming SGA is named Finals MVP:1. Magic Johnson2. Steph Curry3. Oscar Robertson4. John Stockton5. Jason Kidd6. Isiah Thomas7. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander8. Bob Cousy9. Steve Nash10. Chris PaulThoughts? 🤔(via… — ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 19, 2025 Steve Nash won his first MVP at 30. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won his first MVP at 26 the same year he won a championship and finals MVP. It's only up from here for SGA. He IS the greatest Canadian basketball player ever. — sidra 🇵🇸 (@KashmiriChai32) June 23, 2025 SGA the greatest Canadian player of all time btw.. tell Steve Nash to move out the way 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦 — Dre (@DreDay93_) June 23, 2025 SGA >Chris PaulRuss 😢James HardenDameLuka Steve Nash Allen Iverson 👀 — Breiden Fehoko (@BreidenFehoko) June 23, 2025 No disrespect to Steve Nash. But you're debating with a wall now if you think Shai Gilgeous-Alexander isn't the greatest Canadian. — Libaan Osman (@libaanstar1) June 23, 2025 Plenty, however, are still on Team Nash, with the conversation gaining steam throughout the playoffs. SGA is incredible but don't think he takes the title of greatest Canadian baller quite yetSteve Nash was a BAD MANhttps:// — keepfischin (@keepfischin) May 27, 2025 Nash has more MVP titles, more all NBA first teams, 8.5 assists over his career and played 18 years. I think it's too early to rank SGA before Nash. If SGA still plays at a decent level in 8 years, it might be a different story but I just find it weird to call it now when he's… — Stats Man X (@StatsManX) June 20, 2025 One thing is for certain: there's no better representative of the Canadian game — and maybe the NBA as a whole — right now than SGA, regardless of where you have him ranked among all-time Canadian ballers at this point in his career. His humility and selfless attitude was on full display just moments after the buzzer sounded on Sunday's Game 7 victory. 'A lot of hard work, a lot of hours in the gym,' SGA said of winning his first NBA title. 'This isn't just a win for me. This is a win for my family. This is a win for my friends. This is a win for everybody that was in my corner growing up. This is a win for the fans, the best fans in the world.' His refreshing team-first approach is something to be lauded and appreciated. 'Focusing on just being the best version of myself for this basketball team, for whatever it takes, for however many games it is, however many possessions is needed, however many moments,' Gilgeous-Alexander added. 'Ultimately, I'm just trying to stay in the moment. I think that's what's gotten me here. That's what has helped me achieve the MVP award, achieve all the things I've achieved. It's helped this team win basketball games.' Savour SGA while he's around, Canada. Players like this come around once in a generation.
