NBA agent praises OKC Thunder's chemistry, calls it the best in the league

Just from small glimpses, you can see how close the Oklahoma City Thunder are. While other fanbases might view their postgame interview tradition as corny, there's no doubt it exemplifies the strong locker room culture Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Mark Daigneault have carefully crafted over the years.

The Thunder rode that chemistry into an NBA championship. To lift the Larry O'Brien trophy, you need everybody on the same page. Even the smallest chemistry fractures could derail a season despite a talented roster on paper. Time and time again, you saw everybody in OKC understand their role while also being given space to grow.

It's a delicate balancing act. Sometimes NBA players watch out for themselves. That could lead to different agendas being pushed in the locker room. But Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren have made it known what everybody's role is.

To the point that prominent NBA agents have noticed. In a pretty unprecedented move, Aaron Turner appeared on "The Hoop Collective" podcast to dissect the lengthy contract negotiations between his client Jonathan Kuminga and the Golden State Warriors. With training camp only a week away, we still don't have a resolution to the restricted free agent.

Since he joined the Warriors as the No. 7 pick of the 2021 NBA draft, Kuminga has had an inconsistent role. Too many times has the coaching staff given him the cold shoulder. Then again, he doesn't do himself any favors either by not playing the role they want him to play. It's made for an ugly marriage and inevitable divorce.

As Turner explained his side of the story, he noted the importance of team buy-in. You need everybody pulling on the same rope if you hope to reach your team's ambitions. One fear for the Warriors if Kuminga has to sign the qualifying offer is that he'll be mentally checked out for the season.

Kuminga could go solo and try to recoup his value. If he takes the qualifying offer, he knows he won't be on the Warriors for much longer. This eliminates any motivation to help Golden State by sacrificing some of his personal stats. That's obviously a potential locker room problem that could grow. But Turner vouched that it won't be a problem and cited the league's best example.

"The Thunder have set the bar," Turner said. "They're very close-knit as a team."

Regardless of how this awkward situation plays out between the Warriors and Kuminga, it was interesting to hear an NBA agent mention the Thunder's chemistry as the league's best. You always thought that was the case, but to hear it from somebody inside the league was noteworthy.

The Thunder have perfected the right personalities. Everybody realizes how important it is to prioritize wins first before individual goals. As Alex Caruso put it this offseason, everybody gets paid when they have success on the court.

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: NBA agent praises Thunder's chemistry, calls it the best in the league