Thunder’s 68-win season: A statistical omen for championship glory

NBA-ABA merger happened before the start of the 1976-1977 NBA season.

Counting the champions from that season up to the most recently completed season (2023-2024):

1. First post-merger season: 1976-1977 (Champion: Portland Trail Blazers)
2. Most recent season: 2023-2024 (Champion: Boston Celtics)

Counting every season in between, there have been 48 NBA champions crowned since the NBA-ABA merger.

17 different teams have won a championship since the merger.

The Thunder finished the season with 68 wins, which is the sixth-best record ever in the NBA.

In NBA history, reaching the 65-win mark in a single regular season has been a hallmark of dominance. It’s only happened 21 times, and in most cases, it leads to the ultimate prize.

In fact, 15 of those 21 teams went on to win the NBA Championship—a strong correlation between regular-season excellence and postseason success. Thunder have a 71.43% just based on their history of wins.

But what about the exceptions?

Five of those teams didn't even make the NBA Finals

Point Differential

OKC ended the 2024-25 regular season with a 12.9 average point differential, the HIGHEST in NBA history. The previous record (12.3) was held by the 1970-71 Bucks and the 1971-72 Lakers... BOTH went on to win a championship.

The Oklahoma City Thunder just did something no team has done in over half a century — they surpassed the legendary 1971–72 Lakers in point differential per game, a mark that stood untouched for 53 years.

That’s not just a stat — it’s a signal.

The previous five teams that topped the point differential leaderboard — the ‘72 Lakers, ‘71 Bucks, ‘96 Bulls, ‘17 Warriors, and 2023–24 Celtics — all went on to win the NBA Championship that same season. In fact, dominating the regular season in this way has historically been a strong predictor of postseason success.

And it gets even more compelling the deeper you look.

Out of the top 23 teams in NBA history by point differential, 14 have gone on to win the title. That includes teams like the ‘86 Celtics, ‘92 Bulls, and ‘08 Celtics — teams remembered not just for winning, but for overwhelming their competition.

Now, this year’s list includes three new entries: Oklahoma City, Boston, and Cleveland. Since the playoffs haven’t started yet, let’s take those three out for now. That leaves 20 teams before this season, and 14 of them won it all — a 70% success rate.

For the Thunder, that’s not just a good omen — that’s a statistical spotlight.

Their 68-win season is already historic. Now comes the real test.

The Thunder outscored teams by 1,055 points, breaking the record of the 71-72 Lakers by 48 points.