From the Archives: The Trade That Built the Thunder's Title…

By the Thunder Nightly Desk · Thursday, September 24

The Thunder's only championship before 2025 came in 1979, back when the franchise played in Seattle, one banner in 41 seasons before the 2008 move to Oklahoma City. The 2025 title traces straight to a 2019 trade that sent Paul George to the Clippers and brought back Gilgeous-Alexander, the same return that now underwrites a $216.2 million payroll built to keep last season's 64-18 core together.

Thunder Nightly artwork — Illustration by Hoops Nightly.

Seattle's One Banner

The franchise entered the NBA in 1967-68 as the Seattle SuperSonics and won its only Seattle title in 1979, reaching the Finals three times across 41 seasons there. Howard Schultz sold the team in 2006, and by 2008 it had relocated to Oklahoma City as the Thunder, taking Russell Westbrook, Seattle's final draft pick, as the new franchise's first cornerstone. Oklahoma City finally added a second banner in 2025, beating the Indiana Pacers in seven games for its first championship since leaving the Pacific Northwest.

The Deal Behind the Pace

That title traces back to a 2019 trade that sent Paul George to the Clippers and returned Gilgeous-Alexander along with a stack of future picks. Years later, the fast-paced identity built around that return produced a 100.4 pace mark last season, the league's top net figure at 11.1, and a 64-18 finish. It reads as a sharper outcome than October 2012, when Oklahoma City traded James Harden to Houston with his extension unresolved rather than pay him to stay.

Paying to Keep It

This roster costs $216.2 million against a $165.0 million cap, past the $209.0 million first apron and approaching the $221.7 million second, the price of not repeating the Harden decision. Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Jalen Williams headline that bill, the same four who anchored last season's league-best defense. The only number in Paycom Center's rafters belongs to Nick Collison, retired in 2019 for a career that ran from 2003 to 2018 and bridged the Seattle years to the Oklahoma City ones, a reminder that this franchise's continuity has usually meant one player staying, not four getting paid at once.

When did the Thunder win their only championship before 2025?

The franchise's only other title came in 1979, when the team was still the Seattle SuperSonics. Oklahoma City's 2025 championship over the Indiana Pacers is the only banner since the 2008 move.

How did the Thunder acquire Gilgeous-Alexander?

Oklahoma City acquired him in the 2019 trade that sent Paul George to the Clippers, along with a series of future draft picks that became part of the franchise's asset base. That return is the foundation of last season's 64-18 record and the 2025 title.

By the Thunder Nightly Desk, written from the club's data and the reports on file, with every name and number checked against them. How the desks work.