The Oklahoma City Thunder have the best record in the Western Conference, but narrowly avoided a game against the Steph Curry-less Golden State Warriors with a 105-101 win earlier this week. After the game, Thunder All-Star point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was asked if he would like to play against the undermanned Dubs. His response was high praise for the franchise and seemed to bode well for the team’s prospects this season.

“Every time you play against this team, it’s a dogfight,” Alexander told reporters, according to Farbod Esnaashari. “They have won at a high level for so long for a reason. No matter who’s out there, no matter who’s not playing, they play right, they play together and they play physical. We knew that going into the night and we obviously did enough of that, barring a few injuries, to get a dub.”

The Warriors’ organizational stability has been tested in recent years following the departures of prominent players such as Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson and Jordan Poole, as well as prominent assistant coaches and executives. However, head coach Steve Kerr, Steph Curry and Draymond Green have always been the team’s key culture creators, day in and day out. This trio appeared to have benefited from their veteran magic during the 2021-22 season, which ended with an NBA title. However, that magic seemed to have disappeared in the last two seasons.

But maybe they’ve found the magic again.