NBA Power Rankings: New York Knicks the favorites after bold trade deadline moves?

4. Oklahoma City Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder have gone from one of the best feel-good stories in the Western Conference to now a team that could possibly make a deep playoff run. I still don't believe there are many that can envision the Thunder winning the West but perhaps they may have enough to win a playoff series or two. Especially after they made the NBA Trade Deadline move for Gordon Hayward.

Of all the moves made at the trade deadline, I'd rank the Thunder's move for Hayward near the top. It makes sense on so many levels and Hayward could truly unlock this team's potential to make a deep run in the West. He's an impactful player that a team doesn't need to work around for him to make a difference.

For such a young team, Hayward is a player that can immediately pay dividends. It remains to be seen if the Thunder can continue to play at such a high level but it will be an interesting experiment heading into the postseason. We're going to find out pretty quickly just how real this Thunder team is.