The OKC Thunder enter the 2024–25 NBA season with hopes of not only repeating their success from last year, but ultimately surpassing it.

Even though they ended up with the best record in the Western Conference and reached the semifinals for the first time since 2016, it was clear in the summer that Oklahoma City still had holes that needed to be filled, given that they were beaten and ultimately defeated in six games in the second round by the physically superior and more experienced Mavericks.

As a result, Sam Presti and his team took charge in the offseason, making a series of changes that improved Coach Mark Daigneault’s arsenal. He not only added much-needed size to their frontcourt with the signing of Isaiah Hartenstein, but also added shooting depth to their backcourt rotation with the trade that brought in elite 3-and-D guard Alex Caruso.

Now the newly formed Thunder team enters the new season with high hopes and expectations. Bookmakers even go so far as to give them the second best chance of taking home the famous Larry O’Brien Trophy, only behind the reigning NBA champions themselves, the Boston Celtics.

Of course, before they can even think about raising their franchise’s first championship banner in the ceiling of the Paycom Center, they have to complete the 82 regular season games that go with it.

Looking at the Thunder’s upcoming schedule, it’s obvious that they have several hurdles to overcome on their way to reclaiming the top spot in the Western Conference and, of course, ultimate glory. Along the way, however, they’ll find themselves in a 10-game schedule that, at first glance, appears to be by far their most challenging of the year.

There will be no handouts for the Thunder in the 2024-25 season, nor should there be. If they want to be the best team in the league, they have to beat the best.

Still, looking at their schedule for next season, it’s pretty clear that they have a truly difficult task ahead of them – eight of their first 14 opponents won 47 or more games last year and some of the others, like San Antonio, have even improved – with their 10-game schedule between December 31 and January 17 being the real eyesore.

With the exception of the Washington Wizards, all of these teams secured a postseason berth with 47 or more wins last year, and five of them rank in the top seven in odds of winning the 2025 NBA championship, according to FanDuel.

A good sign for the Thunder during this two-and-a-half-week period is the fact that they begin with five consecutive home games, which could theoretically – depending on their record – give them positive momentum on their side heading into their battle against the reigning champion Boston Celtics and the subsequent four-game road trip.

At this point last season, Oklahoma City had a record of 27-13 (.675), but admittedly hadn’t had a stretch as difficult as this one, so these 10 games will be crucial in determining how strong this revamped team really is.

If they can pick up a win during that time, their chances of staying at the top of the much-improved Western Conference standings will increase.