Oklahoma Sooners GM Jim Nagy should be taking notes on what just happened in OKC
Oklahoma City is not Norman, and vice versa. They are not the same city, but are very close to one another, and some may even consider Norman a suburb of the OKC metro area. So when you talk about the state of Oklahoma, usually attention is directed to the biggest city in the state — […]
Oklahoma City is not Norman, and vice versa. They are not the same city, but are very close to one another, and some may even consider Norman a suburb of the OKC metro area.
So when you talk about the state of Oklahoma, usually attention is directed to the biggest city in the state — OKC. But, over the last century or so, when it comes to sports, it’s been Norman, because that’s where OU is. They have one of the best football programs of all time and definitely the best softball program of all time.
But on the football side of things for OU, things haven’t been near what they used to be for some time. In the last three years, they have had two losing seasons, their first two losing seasons since the late 90s. So, it’s safe to say that they need to get things back on track.
That’s partly why they hired new GM Jim Nagy, who previously served a role that helped him really see some of the best college football players in the country with the Reese’s Senior Bowl, and was an NFL scout at one point in his career. With this new era of college football, the Sooners will need all the help they can get in the scouting department.
And, it appears that Nagy is taking some notes on what is happening just down the road in OKC.
OKC Thunder win the NBA Championship
In 2008, OKC got its first-ever professional sports team, and it’s the only one in the major American sports. In 2012, the Thunder made the NBA Finals, but lost to the Miami Heat. Since then, it’s been a lot of ups and downs, from blowing 3-1 leads in the Western Conference Finals, to losing both of their franchise guys, then winning just 24 games in a season, out of 82, mind you.
Now, they are on top again. A rebuild that lasted realistically five years, which is about as quick as you can get for a rebuild, is no longer a rebuild. Their franchise guy, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, won the MVP, scoring title, WCF MVP, and the Finals MVP after beating the Indiana Pacers in Game 7. But, it doesn’t just start and end with him; they are about as much of a team as it gets.
The second youngest team to ever win the Finals did it because of their team, not just SGA. They are homegrown, where they have developed all of their star players, haven’t signed any star players in free agency, or done anything crazy that would be considered a shortcut to get to where they are. And, they did it with one of the greatest defenses of all time.
They have done it all the right way. That’s what the Sooners need to do, get back to winning and building it the right way, and Jim Nagy knows that, and he definitely respects that.
After the Thunder won Game 7, Nagy tweeted out a picture of Sam Presti, the GM of the Thunder, and showed his respect. To me, that shows that he is striving to do the same thing, but on the football side of things. Obviously, the two sports are very different, not to mention one is professional and one is collegiate. But there are things that Nagy can take from what the Thunder have done.
And, I’m sure that Nagy is certainly taking notes. 2025 will be a big season for Brent Venables and the Sooners. And, they have been on a hot streak lately when it comes to recruiting for the 2026 class, and they are only just getting started.
Brent Venables & Jim Nagy forming a dynamic duo that has already paid dividends for the Oklahoma Sooners’ roster building
To kick off the offseason, the Oklahoma Sooners made waves when they announced former Senior Bowl director and longtime NFL executive Jim Nagy as the general manager of their football team moving forward. The move was viewed as a coup by Oklahoma, and it's paid off with a tremendous spring transfer portal performance, most notably […]
