Bad news: we are officially 30 days away from the start of OKC Thunder regular season basketball. The good news? We’re only nine days away from training camp.

The countdown has started. In 30 days we will watch the new-look Thunder likely destroy the New York Knicks in front of a bonkers Oklahoma City crowd. I’m more excited for this season than the last four seasons of The Challenge, but to get there we need the preseason. And before the preseason we need training camp. Thankfully we officially have a date for training camp.

On September 26th everybody on the OKC Thunder roster – guaranteed players, potential signees and coaches – will meet in Oklahoma City to begin training camp. This season’s camp will be drastically different from last as most of the roster has a year of experience playing together. That hasn’t stopped the team from getting together early though.

According to The Norman Transcript’s Fred Katz, most players and coaches are already in OKC prepping together. This isn’t anything new from seasons past, but the extra work is important for a team integrating a second superstar into their system.

The importance of training camp

After hearing how Russell Westbrook didn’t have a supporting cast all season, this team has a major chip on their shoulder. With 16 guaranteed contracts that makes for a highly-competitive camp.

A week ago we highlighted how the final roster spot will probably come down to Semaj Christon and Kyle Singler. Although that is 98% likely, everybody is coming into camp ready to fight for a spot. Young players like Josh Huestis and Dakari Johnson haven’t proved anything at the NBA-level yet. The team leader, Russell Westbrook, is one of the most hyper-competitive players in the league. Everything about the Thunder amounts to a highly-active camp, one that hopefully breeds a greater sense of team camaraderie and chemistry.

That’s truly where Oklahoma City will be focused on the most. This camp is there opportunity to find their strengths and weaknesses, how they can exploit their versatility against 29 other teams. OKC isn’t a title contender yet – camp is where they can start the process.

Camp begins Tuesday, September 26th. Their first preseason game is a week later, October 3rd against the Rockets. We’re almost there Thunder Nation, get excited for another season of OKC basketball.