Will it fall to just one man to help get OKC back to the top of the West?
On the first night of the NBA season expect to see Kevin Durant with shoulders the size of Atlas, given the amount of expectation and responsibility he carrying at the moment.
The superstar small forward will be the focal point of his side’s attack for at least the first month of the season after the setback suffered by Russell Westbrook.
After looking set to play some time in the Thunder’s pre-season, Westbrook underwent another surgery, putting his return to the court at around 4-6 weeks into the regular season.
Other stars around the league have urged Westbrook not to rush back, and if he can return healthy one of the most exciting and athletic players in the league will back wearing jersey number zero.
This year looms as the biggest test the Thunder have faced in the past three seasons even bigger than the year they just fell short of Miami in the Finals.
For the second straight year the Thunder and coach Scott Brooks will be needing to find a shooting guard to take the starting role.
After the much-publicised departure of James Harden, Oklahoma City have now lost Kevin Martin, who did a more than fair job filling in for the bearded one last year.
In his place will, most likely, be Thabo Sefolosha, who will need to transform himself from a defensive-minded stretch two man, to somebody who can provide close to 15 points a night as it remains to be seen if Jeremy Lamb can turn himself into that type of player, at least in the Thunder’s current set-up.
Durant and Westbrook will still have the Thunder’s offence humming, despite teams knowing what to expect when they play the Thunder, something that was not the case four years ago when they burst onto the scene.
The other big test for Durant this season will be stepping up when it counts in the fourth quarter of close games and the playoffs.
Despite showing he has ice-water running through his veins in the past, Durant was well below his usual standards late in the playoffs in 2012-13.
The front-court rotation of Kendrick Perkins, Nick Collison and Serge Ibaka will keep the Thunder as one of the better defensive teams in the West.
Also to keep an eye of this season is the development of New Zealand-born centre Steve Adams who could turn out to be the 7ft big man the Thunder need.
Oklahoma City Thunder: 2nd
Rankings
Offence: 9.5
Defence: 8.5
Front court: 8
Back court: 9
Bench: 8.5
Coach: 8.5
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