Once a major skeptic, the former 9-year NBA veteran is drastically changing his mind on the Thunder

Although they may have finished the 2023-24 regular season as the history-making top seed in the Western Conference standings, some weren’t as convinced that the OKC Thunder were a legitimate threat to win the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

In the end, this small group of disbelievers were right, as Mark Daigneault’s team was forced to forfeit six games into their semifinal playoff series against the Dallas Mavericks.

Now, five months removed from their downfall, Oklahoma City is recharged, repositioned and ready to compete for ultimate glory after an offseason filled with necessary shakeups in the talent pool.

GM Sam Presti’s summer shenanigans appear to have been enough to embolden the oddsmakers, as they currently give the Thunder the second-best odds to win the 2025 NBA Championship, but, perhaps just as impressively, they’ve done it to bring some former naysayers to the light, particularly former NBA forward Chandler Parsons.

Parsons, one of the more outspoken skeptics of their championship chances, correctly pointed out well before last year’s postseason began that OKC’s lack of size and physicality up front could severely limit their chances.

After being manhandled by both the Mavs in round two and even, to some extent, the New Orleans Pelicans in round one, the Thunder decided to address this clear weakness within their rotation by signing a franchise-record $87 million contract Dollars completed free agency to land highly touted big Isaiah Hartenstein.

Due to his arrival in Loud City and some other moves to strengthen the roster, the former nine-year pro admitted on a recent episode of Run it Back that he now believes that core of one Led by returning superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, budding studs Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams are undoubtedly the favorites to win the West.

“All they lost is Josh Giddey and they gained Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein, who couldn’t be more perfect role players for this team.” [because] They are veterans, they know their position, they know how to play. Hartenstein knows how to make that little pocket pass in this pick-and-roll, he can now knock down the corner third. Caruso, the way he defends, the way he plays hard, he won’t demand the ball. These guys are a perfect fit to compete against these young, rising stars. “They were almost the best team in the West last year…This team is real, they have a great young coach, they’re ready for the future…This is the best team in the Western Conference.” Parsons said.

Parsons continued his laudatory commentary on the Thunder by assuaging possible fears that may have been stoked by the summer maneuvers of some of their conference rivals (namely the Sacramento Kings and Dallas Mavericks), highlighting their unmatched rotation depth, particularly Hartenstein and Caruso now in the picture and say they are “built for play, 10, 11, 12 boys”.

That’s why the one-time skeptic who previously stated that “it’s hard to trust this young team” now predicts that Oklahoma City will make a “landslide” toward becoming king of the Western Conference in 2024- 25.