Oklahoma City have their star player in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for Sam Presti to build around. Gilgeous-Alexander can do everything on the basketball court and is comfortable taking over late in games.
Shai had these hot streaks last season where he would just dominate from all three levels and slice defenses apart with his passing. That being said, it is almost impossible for a basketball team to achieve any sort of success with just one star.
The Thunder were incredibly fun during Westbrook’s MVP season but the team had a defined ceiling. Oklahoma City would collapse offensively whenever Russell went to the bench and that really hurt the Thunder in the first round series against the Rockets.