The Warriors’ 73-game winning streak is in clear and immediate danger after the Thunder’s 11-1 start

He set the NBA record for wins in the regular season Golden State Warriors. In the 2015-16 season, the team beat their opponents 73 times in the regular season. Of course, they would still lose the iconic NBA Finals for the Cleveland Cavaliersso some say it was all for nothing. However, winning that many games is nothing to scoff at, and many fans think that record will never be surpassed. The Oklahoma City Thunder they have a chance to do the unthinkable and break the record for wins this season. The defending champion is already 11-1. They are currently on pace to win around 75 games, but do they really have the firepower to top the Warriors in 2015-16?

A look back at the Warriors’ 73-win season

The Warriors still didn’t have Kevin Durant when they won 73 games in 2015-16. However, they were already in the midst of revolutionizing the sport of basketball. Steph Curry won his second MVP of the year, this time by unanimous decision. It’s a feat that has never happened before or since in NBA history. The the best shooter ever hit a record 402 3-pointers.

Curry’s partners in crime were Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. Thompson, another elite scorer, tied a playoff record with 11 3-pointers in the game. Green has established himself as one of the best defenders ever but also entered the 3-point barrage with an NBA Finals Game 7 record six 3-pointers.

Before this team, the deep ball was not nearly as important a part of the NBA game. It now reigns as the most important aspect of basketball. The The Warriors won a record 24 games to start the seasonand their 54-game home winning streak extended to the previous season.

Harrison Barnes, Shaun Livingston, Andrew Bogut and Another Iguodala were the players who tied it all together, the last of whom won the NBA Finals MVP and finished second in Sixth Man of the Year voting this year. The Warriors should have capped off a glorious season with a championship, but surrendered a 3-1 lead to LeBron James and company. The Cavaliers’ victory in the NBA Finals proved that the Warriors were, in fact, defeated, but just barely.

The 2025-26 Thunder look unbeatable

Topping the Warriors’ 73-game winning streak won’t be easy, but the Thunder are on pace to do it. En route to winning the championship last season, the Thunder outscored opponents by a record 12.9 points per game. Oklahoma City’s 68 regular season wins were the fourth most ever.

The team could be even better now. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander he’s playing like an MVP candidate again, and it looks like it Chet Holmgren he could join him in the All-Star Game this year. Lou Dort, Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso don’t need to produce high scores, but they know their roles and play them well. Their role, of course, is to be one of the best point guards in the NBA.

Isaiah Hartenstein and Jailin Williams are solid big men, and Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe can score off the bench. Even Ajay Mitchell burst onto the scene out of nowhere this year. The UC Santa Barbara product averaged just 6.5 points per game as a rookie last year. He saw playing time here and there, but for the most part he wasn’t part of it Mark Daigneault‘s rotation. now, Mitchell is third on the team in scoring with 17.2 points per game.

Mitchell is the Thunder’s latest player development success story. They have had and will have a surplus of draft picks, and are able to diagnose the talent that fits the roster perfectly. So far, the team’s 108.3 points per game are the most in the NBA, and their defensive rating of 105.4 also ranks first.

And they should only continue to improve, as Jaylen Williams hasn’t even returned to the bullpen after a wrist injury. Champion Thomas Sorber is out for the yearbut last year’s first round pick, Nikola Topić has a chance to recover from testicular cancer at some point this year.

Once the Thunder get all their reinforcements back, they will be hard to beat. Their depth is unmatched, so they can survive injuries, backs and travel better than most other teams. They play unselfish basketball where anyone can play on any given night and where everyone plays lock down defense. Gilgeous-Alexander can always save them when needed.

Many teams go through slow periods the year after a championship win. Call it a championship drought, or just consider the fact that teams that make deep playoff runs have shorter offseasons to rebuild. None of this seems to matter to the Thunder. They are simply a dominant team and should continue to be so for years to come. This year, in particular, a 74-plus win season should not be ruled out.