NBA: Top 5 most overrated teams entering 2013-14

1. Oklahoma City Thunder

Ok, hear me out.

Durant will dazzle us with his skill and the Thunder will win a whole lot of games this season, no doubt. Durant’s probably at the beginning of his prime, and that means he can only improve compared to before. That means OKC is a threat to make plenty of playoff noise for the foreseeable future.

However, I’m not convinced that they’re a bonafide contender anymore.

Ten days back, they were up there in tier two. However, Russell Westbrook underwent his second surgery on the same knee. A second surgery has never been good, as history has shown. In any case, he’ll miss the first month of the season and there’s no saying how well he’ll play on his return.

One thing we can say for sure: The Thunder are screwed with him.

The Memphis Grizzlies literally manhandled OKC in last year’s second round, and no amount of individual improvement from Durant this year will change the fact that the Thunder need a second superstar option.

Even if Westbrook comes back at full strength, and starts prancing around the court, this is still a team that starts both Kendrick Perkins and Thabo Sefolosha, two players who opponents largely ignore.

With Kevin Martin’s trade, most of the sixth man’s scoring load falls on the woefully untested Jeremy Lamb.

OKC was a title contender when James Harden was on the roster, but now that the deal that sent The Beard to Houston has yielded nothing of value, the team just doesn’t hold as much promise anymore. As strange as it sounds, the Thunder’s title window might already be closed.