5 Biggest Questions That Oklahoma City Thunder Have to Answer Next Season

The Oklahoma City Thunder's 2015-16 campaign is one filled with hope and high expectations, but there are still plenty of questions left to be answered. With Kevin Durant's pending free agency setting the backdrop for the upcoming season, there is a sense of uncertainty that is more prevalent than in past years. 

The Thunder have a lot on their plate as they look to bounce back from missing the playoffs for the first time since 2008-09. The speculation surrounding Durant's future is likely to turn every game into a media circus. The club will also deal with the growing pains of new head coach Billy Donovan, who is making the leap from college to the pros.  

Making matters worse, an already tough Western Conference got even stronger at the top during the offseason. 

The San Antonio Spurs added LaMarcus Aldridge and David West to a core that's just a year removed from winning a title. The Los Angeles Clippers improved their depth with Paul Pierce, Lance Stephenson and Josh Smith. The Houston Rockets took a chance on point guard Ty Lawson, while the Golden State Warriors are the defending champions coming off a franchise-best 67-win season.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma City didn't make any big splashes this summer but still built a potential contender by bringing the band back together. The club re-signed Enes Kanter (four years, $70 million) and Kyle Singler (five years, $25 million) to lucrative deals, as well as drafted promising point guard Cameron Payne with the No. 14 overall pick. 

With the rise in talent comes the increase in pressure. The Thunder have had championship-caliber rosters in the past, yet they have annually come up short in the quest for their first title. For that to change this upcoming season, it will require a little bit of soul searching.

Along the way, these five questions must be answered. 

Can Enes Kanter Improve on Defense?

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There is one unavoidable fact that makes the $70 million OKC will pay Enes Kanter over the next four years a risky investment: He was the worst defensive center in basketball last season.

The proof is in the statistics. According to ESPN.com's Defensive Real Plus/Minus, a tool used to determine how a player's defense impacts his team when he's on the floor, Kanter's minus-3.87 was the worst of any center in the league last year. Among all positions, only five players in the entire NBA finished with a worse DRPM than Kanter: Bojan Bogdanovic, Jabari Brown, Zach LaVine, Jamal Crawford and Derrick Williams. 

During the first half of the season, the Utah Jazz had a defensive rating of 106.1. After trading Kanter to Oklahoma City shortly after the All-Star break, that number shrunk dramatically to an astonishing 94.6, per NBA.com. You can't put that kind of improvement solely on the emergence of Rudy Gobert. 

Conversely, the Thunder allowed 101 points per 100 possessions in the first half and 107 points after the break, per NBA.com. You can't put all of the blame on Serge Ibaka missing the last two months of the season. 

The bright side is Kanter is still only 23 years old, and his best basketball is ahead of him. Jenni Carlson of the Oklahoman believes extended time with the Thunder's coaching staff will help shore up the Turkish Tower's deficiencies:

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The Thunder has a proven track record of developing the defense of big men. Most notable are Serge Ibaka and Steven Adams, but even someone like Hasheem Thabeet was better defensively after time in Oklahoma City.

The man behind that development is Mark Bryant. The big man coach survived the coaching change, so with Bryant as well as a player-teacher like Nick Collison, we know the Thunder has the means to teach Kanter how to play better defense.

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It will be tough for OKC to realize its championship dreams with one of its prized big men giving back everything he's putting up. Until Kanter shows improvement at the defensive end, he's essentially a bigger version of Crawford, and the Thunder would be wise to utilize him in a similar sixth-man role. 

Can Billy Donovan Make the Transition from College to the Pros?

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The biggest change Oklahoma City made this summer was letting go of longtime coach Scott Brooks and replacing him with Florida Gators legend Billy Donovan. During his 21 years in the college ranks, Donovan accrued a 502-206 record (.709 winning percentage) and brought two national championships back to Gainesville. 

However, while Steve Kerr and David Blatt proved last season that rookie head coaches can make an immediate impact by leading their respective teams to the NBA Finals, it's rare for a newcomer to have that kind of instant success. In the last 60 years, only four head coaches won a title in their first season despite having no NBA experience: Kerr (2014-15), Pat Riley (1981-82), Paul Westhead (1979-80) and George Senesky (1955-56)

College coaches have had their share of struggles making the jump to the next level. Established collegiate sideline sergeants like Rick Pitino, John Calipari and Tim Floyd all flopped in the NBA before retreating back to the NCAA.

For all of Donovan's success, he's never had to deal with a superstar hitting free agency like he will with Durant or coached someone as fiery as Russell Westbrook. To his credit, Donovan admitted to having his work cut out for him in an interview with ESPN.com's Royce Young:

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Obviously, scouting report, the game, film sessions, on the floor, coaching, teaching -- I've been doing that for a long, long time. But there are different things that go on as [it] relates. There are 82 games. The playoffs are two months. The preseason. The season's a lot longer. Back-to-backs. Four games in six nights. There will be a lot of things that will be a bit different. So when someone uses the word 'rookie coach' for me, yeah, I'm stepping into an area and a place in basketball that I haven't been before as a coach.

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Donovan will be under intense pressure in his first season to take the club to new heights after falling short of winning a title the last seven years. The fact that he was general manager Sam Presti's first and only choice will only add to the scrutiny if he fails to meet expectations. 

Who Will Fill out the Starting Five?

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One of Donovan's first tasks going into the season will be deciding on an ideal starting rotation. Durant, Westbrook and Ibaka will occupy three of the five spots, leaving center and shooting guard as the two biggest position battles going into camp. 

At the 2, Donovan gets to choose between Anthony Morrow, Dion Waiters and Andre Roberson. Each brings something different to the table that makes them a viable candidate to start. Morrow is an elite three-point marksman. Waiters is a physical slasher who becomes even harder to guard when his jumper is falling, while Roberson is a stout perimeter defender. 

Of the three, Morrow would be the most logical choice. His 42.9 percent career mark from downtown ranks ninth-best all-time, and he fills Donovan's need for someone who can space the floor. Additionally, he doesn't require a lot of touches, which comes in handy in a starting rotation that already has three established scorers. 

Waiters is better suited to lead the second unit, where he will have more freedom to create for himself and there is more of a need for the offensive spark he provides. Roberson's offensive limitations put him at a disadvantage against the other contenders, but his ability to make life miserable for opposing scorers will come in handy. 

Meanwhile, the Thunder have a heavyweight fight brewing at center between Steven Adams and Enes Kanter. Kanter is the first true interior scoring threat the Thunder have had in their franchise history, but his defensive struggles make him a liability in the starting rotation. Adams is a rugged defender with a knack for both getting in foul trouble and under opponents' skin.

If Donovan is looking for an offense-heavy lineup, he could trot out Kanter alongside the Big Three, then bring in a defensive second unit led by Adams to hold down the fort. However, opting for Adams in the starting five gives both lineups greater balance.

Deciding between this much talent is a good problem to have, but how Donovan organizes his rotation will be something that impacts the team as the season progresses.

Can Billy Donovan Manage the Kevin Durant-Russell Westbrook Dynamic?

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Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have a lot in common. They are both 26 years old, in the prime of their careers and among the top six players in the NBA. Both men have also achieved individual success in a season where the other was sidelined for most of the year. 

In 2013-14, Westbrook missed 36 games due to knee surgery. That same year, Durant averaged a career-high 32 points per game en route to winning his first MVP award. Last season, Durant was out for 55 games because of numerous foot surgeries, and Westbrook put together one of the greatest all-around performances ever: 28.1 points, 8.6 assists, 7.3 rebounds and 2.1 steals. 

While injuries allowed both players to take their games to another level, it also brings forth the question of how the two can coexist now that they established themselves as MVP candidates. Past history suggests the duo will be just fine. Westbrook has finished in the top seven in assist percentage four of the last six years, while Durant managed to make three trips to the conference finals while sharing the spotlight with Russ. 

If nothing else, Durant's absence helped Westbrook mature as a leader, which is something the point guard pointed out during his exit interview:

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I could be a better leader when I put my mind to it and be able to go out and find ways to make my teammates better throughout the season, regardless of however my game was going. If I was playing well or not, to still find a way to take myself out of the equation and constantly keep helping other guys on my team. I thought that was a huge part of me and my leadership and the biggest part I learned about myself that I can be able to carry over to next season.

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Still, any time a team has two amazing scorers, it is important to find an offensive balance that will keep all parties happy. When should Westbrook defer to KD? When should he take over? What's the right amount of touches for both men?

It's an equation Donovan will have to figure out immediately in order to be successful in his first season. 

Can Oklahoma City Avoid the Injury Bug?

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Injuries have been as much a part of the Thunder's history as scoring titles, conference finals visits and successful drafting.

The past three seasons have been derailed by injuries, from Westbrook's torn meniscus in 2013 to Ibaka's injured quad the year after and nearly the entire roster spending time on the sidelines last season—most notably Kevin Durant. 

If healthy, the Thunder have the talent and depth to be NBA champions, but that's becoming a bigger if as the years continue to go by. Even months removed from the end of the 2014-15 campaign, there are injury concerns that will trickle into the new season.

Durant continues to push his way back from a bone graft procedure he underwent in March, participating in voluntary team workouts and targeting an August return to the court. But there's still uncertainty as to when he'll once again be the KD of old. 

Ibaka, who had knee surgery in March, is still waiting to be cleared to play, even after being selected to participate in an offseason exhibition game. Kanter and Nick Collison both underwent offseason knee surgery that was expected to sideline them for four to six weeks, while rookie Cameron Payne missed all of summer league with a fracture in his ring finger. 

Though there's still plenty of recovery time between now and the start of the season, it's hard not to be concerned given everything the team has gone through in the past. The only thing more elusive than a championship banner in Oklahoma City seems to be a clean bill of health. 

The Thunder's injury troubles will test the mettle of the team's deep, yet unproven bench. Unlike other Western contenders, OKC doesn't have an established reserve who could step in if a key figure goes down. If someone like D.J. Augustin or Kyle Singler is forced to play heavy minutes in relief, that will once again breed disappointment for the Thunder.