Thunder focused on title defense following short offseason

Despite a shortened offseason, the Oklahoma City Thunder's players say they are ready to defend their first title in franchise history.

The journey will be led by 2025 NBA Most Valuable Player and Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who says his goal is to win it all again.

"It would suck to lose the NBA championship in 2026," Gilgeous-Alexander said on Monday at the Thunder media day. "That's the new focus. That's the new goal."

While Gilgeous-Alexander was businesslike in his approach to the new season, his teammates spoke about using the offseason break to their advantage.

Center Chet Holmgren, who signed a five-year contract extension worth $250 million in the offseason, focused on his body.

"Last summer, I didn't have the time that I needed to kind of get my body to where it needed to be to feel great," Holmgren said. "I'd make all the same decisions again, but I didn't have the time that I needed to kind of get my body to where it needed to be to feel great. So that was a big emphasis this summer in the weight room."

All-Star forward Jalen Williams spent his offseason rehabbing a torn ligament in his shooting wrist, but said Monday the injury may end up helping him in the long run.

"I think it was a good blessing in disguise," Williams said. "It allowed me to take care of my body and not go full throttle. With the short offseason, it's kind of hard to manage how much you want to work out. So it actually made me take a break, which was nice."

The Thunder won a franchise-best 68 games last season and begin their title defense on Oct. 21 when they host the Houston Rockets.

--Field Level Media