NBA Power Rankings:10 Best Teams Post Iguodala, Howard, Paul Signings

Oklahoma City Thunder

April 11, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder small forward Kevin Durant (35) looks on during the second quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. The City Thunder defeated the Warriors 116-97. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

After an unfortunate injury to Russell Westbrook lead to the early dispatch of the former Western Conference Champions, some may question if the Thunder can make it back to that position.

Well, rest assured that the Thunder still have it.

Despite losing Kevin Martin to the Timberwolves, the Thunder still has an exceptionally strong squad. It’s pretty easy to blame the Thunder’s postseason woes on the absence of Westbrook because Reggie Jackson and Derek Fisher certainly do not command the same attention that Russ demands on offense. This allowed defenders to attack the Thunder’s role players more and well, the rest is history.

Well, even with the loss of Martin, Jackson and Jeremy Lamb have shown tremendous promise in the summer league, as have others, leading to the OKC being tied for first as of this writing in the summer league. If the thunder remain healthy, it is hard to imagine a Western Conference Finals without them.