Thunder's Peak Net Rating Tops Warriors' Best, But Titles Favor Golden State
OKC's 2024-25 championship squad posted a higher net rating than any Warriors dynasty season, but Golden State's four titles and 73-9 year still outweigh a two-year Thunder sample.
Published: · Figures as of September 2, 2026
Asked: Are the Thunder better than the best Warriors teams?
OKC's title year out-scored the Warriors' peak; the trophy case still favors Golden State
Measured on net rating — scoring margin per 100 possessions, which is the fairest way to compare eras since it's relative to the same-season league rather than raw box-score totals — Oklahoma City's 2024‑25 championship team (68‑15, net rating +12.27) actually outscored every one of the Warriors' three best regular seasons (2014‑15 through 2016‑17, net ratings +10.11 to +11.40). But the Warriors' stretch produced two titles and a 73‑9 season nobody has matched, and OKC's follow‑up year — 2025‑26, the season most fans mean by "the Thunder" right now — finished a round short of the Finals.
The seasons, side by side
| Season | Team | Record | Win% | Net Rating | Playoff result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | OKC | 68-15 | .819 | +12.27 | Won the title (16-7 in the playoffs) |
| 2016-17 | GSW | 67-15 | .817 | +11.40 | Won the title, a near-perfect 16-1 playoff run |
| 2025-26 | OKC | 64-18 | .780 | +10.95 | Lost the West finals to San Antonio 4-3 after sweeping the first two rounds (11-4 overall) |
| 2015-16 | GSW | 73-9 | .890 | +10.56 | Lost the NBA Finals 4-3 to Cleveland (15-9 in the playoffs) |
| 2014-15 | GSW | 67-15 | .817 | +10.11 | Won the title (16-5 in the playoffs) |
| Season | Net Rating (points per 100 possessions) |
|---|---|
| GSW 14-15 | 10.11 |
| GSW 15-16 | 10.56 |
| GSW 16-17 | 11.40 |
| OKC 24-25 | 12.27 |
| OKC 25-26 | 10.95 |
What the numbers say
- Regular-season dominance: OKC's 2024-25 championship team's +12.27 net rating is the highest figure in this set, ahead of even Golden State's 16-1 juggernaut (+11.40). Last season's 64-18 Thunder (+10.95) still sit inside the Warriors' peak range, just behind 2016-17 and ahead of the other two. No Warriors team here, though, has been caught by anyone on plain win percentage — the 73-9 mark (.890) is untouched by either OKC season.
- The record isn't a fluke: OKC's 2025-26 win rate was almost exactly what its scoring margin implied (the sustainability read has their .780 mark just 1.4 wins off an .797-implied record, "in line" with no fallback expected) — this was an earned number, not a lucky one.
- Where the case for Golden State is stronger: two of these three Warriors seasons ended in championships, and the third still reached the Finals before losing to Cleveland. OKC's most recent season didn't get that far — it ended in a Western Conference Finals loss to San Antonio (they'd swept the first two rounds 4-0 each before falling 4-3), the same round in which, ironically, that 2015-16 Golden State team beat Oklahoma City from a 3-1 deficit on the way to its Finals loss.
- Sample size is the real gap. OKC has produced two truly elite seasons on record (2024-25 and 2025-26); Golden State's run spans eight seasons and four championships (2015, 2017, 2018, 2022) by the historical record. Comparing "the Thunder" to "the best Warriors teams" right now means comparing a two-year peak to an eight-year one — the per-possession numbers say OKC's ceiling has already matched or exceeded Golden State's best single seasons, but there isn't yet the length of track record to call it the same caliber of run.
Confidence: Medium. The per-possession comparison is solid and reasonably era-neutral, and the records above are drawn directly from the same box-score data for both franchises. What it can't settle is whether OKC's peak continues — that's a question about seasons that haven't been played yet, not one the data in front of me can answer.