Following a convincing win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday afternoon, the Oklahoma City Thunder officially improved to 7-0 to begin the 2025-26 campaign, marking the second consecutive season the team has opened with seven straight victories. That feat places Oklahoma City in rare company, joining only two other teams in league history, the Houston Rockets of the mid-1990s and the Boston Celtics of the mid-1960s, to start 7-0 in back-to-back seasons.
Sunday’s win also tied the best start in franchise history, matching last season’s 7-0 mark. Oklahoma City dropped its eighth game a year ago, meaning Tuesday’s road matchup against the LA Clippers presents an opportunity to make early season franchise history. A win in Los Angeles would push the Thunder to 8-0, which would be the best start the franchise has ever recorded.
Regardless of what happens on Tuesday night, this start underscores just how strong this group remains. Repeating as champions is one of the toughest challenges in modern basketball, but the Thunder looks poised to contend again. A 7-0 start in a loaded Western Conference gives Oklahoma City a valuable cushion in the standings and an early edge in its pursuit of the No. 1 seed for a third straight season — crucial for securing home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. Last year’s NBA Finals win over the Pacers proved how important that edge can be, with Game 7 taking place inside Paycom Center.
Even more impressive, Oklahoma City has accomplished this without being fully healthy. Chet Holmgren has missed close to half of the games, while Jalen Williams has yet to play this season. Despite those absences, the Thunder continues to find ways to win. Several of those victories haven’t come easily, especially given that two required double overtime and five have been decided in the final minutes, but those experiences only build chemistry and resilience for a team already rich with playoff pedigree.
It’s these moments of adversity and having to battle, whether it ends up in a win or loss, that makes all the difference come playoff time. That’s especially true for the players who are getting more opportunity to play right now with the injuries, which allows players like Ajay Mitchell to break out in year two and ideally end up leveraging that experience when it matters most in a few months.
Injuries are always a concern, but Oklahoma City’s ability to navigate adversity and maintain perfection through seven games has been remarkable. Now, with a chance to set a new franchise record Tuesday night in Los Angeles, the defending champions have a shot to add another chapter to what’s already shaping up as another special season.
This game against the Clippers will undoubtedly be one of OKC’s toughest tests of the season, but again, that’s a good thing. Win or loss, difficult road contests with slight boosts in significance with a minor franchise record on the line is good experience.
Tonight’s matchup, and the opportunity to go 8-0 to start the season, will tip off at 10:00 p.m. CT at Intuit Dome.
