The Thunder need to get back to their disruptive ways. 

The Oklahoma City Thunder have so far found the necessary recipe for success, and in a pile of mess. OKC has found a way to claw its way to an 8-2 record to start the season, even without major pieces like Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace and Chet Holmgren. This is a successful task for the Thunder, as they will be without some of these stars for the season, but there are still some areas where you can tell OKC is missing some key pieces. 

Last season, Oklahoma City averaged 9.7 steals per game, one of the best averages in the league. This effort was led by Wallace, who averaged 1.9 steals per game himself. Unfortunately, this has taken a hit for OKC so far this season. The team is only averaging 8.1 steals per game this year, with the squad's leader actually being Isaiah Hartenstein, who is averaging 1.2 steals per game. 

This is a big hit for the Thunder, and although it hasn’t seemed to be a huge issue for the team yet, that could easily change in the future when bigger games approach. Not forcing as many steals has also taken a hit to OKC’s turnover differential. Oklahoma City forced opponents to turn the ball over 15.9 times per game on average last season. This year, that has so far dropped to 14 times per game. While this might not seem like a big drop, OKC has only played 10 games so far, and that number could continue to get worse. 

Additionally, the Thunder just aren’t being as intimidating as a whole. Last season, OKC led the league in deflections per game with 20.8, and now the team is all the way down to 17.2. Again, while this might not seem like a huge drop, that number has the potential to get worse, and one tipped ball could be the difference in big games. 

Unfortunately for OKC, Wallace and Williams will likely not be back to save the team from these problems, meaning other players will have to step up. The squad has shown it has the capability to be disruptive, but will now have to prove it game in and game out to make sure the league knows OKC’s defense is still something to be scared of. If the Thunder can get back to the level of chaos they caused last season, then OKC will once again terrorize the league till the summer.