Sam Presti from Oklahoma City said something three years ago. Maybe people did not understand it. First, the Thunder team was bad then. Second, he used difficult words.

Presti said, "Hard work wins." This is a saying from Oklahoma.

It is the same for the Thunder. They worked hard. They worked slowly.

They won against everyone.

The Thunder team is good. Three years ago, they did not win many games. This year, they won many games and are the champions! They beat the Indiana Pacers. This is not good news for other teams. They have a great player named Shai. He and other good players will play next year. They also have new, young players.

They are young. The players who start are 27, 26, 26, 24 and 23 years old. They are brave. They may play well for a long time.

Gilgeous-Alexander said, "We can get better. This is good. Many of us are not at our best yet. We can grow as players and as a team. I am happy about the future. This is a good beginning."

It is good they are doing well now.

Many teams have questions for next season. Oklahoma City does not. Some players are hurt and will miss many games. LeBron James will play his 23rd season. Stephen Curry will be 38. Kevin Durant will play his 18th season. Philadelphia hopes Joel Embiid will be healthy. New York will get a new coach.

Oklahoma City has many good things.

The Pacers team is good. Rick Carlisle said they have many good players.

Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams, and Holmgren like to play together. They do not care who gets the credit. Caruso and Hartenstein play well for the Thunder team. Dort is good at defense. He knows many people do not see how good he is.

The players do not care about showing off. The leaders also do not care.

Caruso said, "You can't be sure of anything in sports. Teams change. Players get hurt. We can't control it. Winning is great. But it's not easy to win every year. We will be ready next year to play better and try to win again."

Presti plans the team. He does not talk much. Clay Bennett owns the team. He also does not talk much. Mark Daigneault is the coach. He is calm and a good leader for the Thunder.

Daigneault said, "I don't know if you will finish like us." He said, "I really wanted this for them. I was happy we did it. Now they can feel this. They work hard and are good teammates. I wanted it for them very much.

The Thunder's trip is not finished. It is just beginning. Presti has many new players. The team can buy a good player if they want. Now, they need to win again.

Hard work helps you win. We still have more work to do.

Presti said in 2022, "We have a lot of work to do. We need to work hard. This is what our state is about. This is what our town is about. This is what our team is about."