Aaron Gordon's Nuggets championship prediction is only way to treat Thunder

To be the man, you gotta beat the man. And to actually beat the man, you have to really believe, deep down, that you're capable of doing so.

The reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder seem insurmountable. At the time of this writing, they're 21-1 and might be poised to break the NBA's single-season wins record, set by the 2016 Golden State Warriors. The Thunder are a machine. After assessing the entire league landscape, a back-to-back championship repeat, for all intents and purposes, feels like a foregone conclusion.

But not according to Denver Nuggets Swiss Army Knife forward Aaron Gordon.

During the latest episode of The Old Man and The Three, Gordon told his Nuggets teammate Cam Johnson that he believes the Nuggets will be the last NBA team to win this season. What he means by that, of course, is that he believes the Nuggets will win the 2026 NBA title in June, as, you know, only the eventual champion of any sport or league can win the last game of the season.

That is some kind of soundbite to share in early December, to say the least:

At face value, it's easy to say Gordon is being arrogant or dismissive of the Nuggets' competition, especially the Thunder. And I'm positive the Thunder will take his comments that way, should the two teams match up in the playoffs. But that's the rub here. You can't approach trying to beat a juggernaut like the Thunder with timidness and a lack of confidence. You have to really believe you can do it. You have to really believe you're the best, even if it seems irrational to everyone on the outside looking in.

Anything less, and the moment you hit an inevitable bout of adversity, you will sink. Full stop.

Gordon's comments about the Nuggets' confidence in winning the title are also illuminating, given his position on the team. Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray are not particularly known for being vocal leaders. That responsibility usually falls to Gordon on Denver's roster. He is the straw that stirs this team's drink. If he's carrying himself like this, it stands to reason that the other Nuggets feel the same way about their chances of capturing the 2026 NBA title. That's pretty notable for a Denver group chasing arguably its biggest rival at the top of the league.

And let's be honest: The Nuggets obviously do have the chops to get their title mission done.

Anyone else trying to end the Thunder's reign this postseason should take notes from Gordon and the Nuggets. Before anything, remember this: To be the man, you have to believe you can beat the man. No questions asked.

Everything else is just everything else.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Aaron Gordon's Nuggets championship prediction is best way to treat Thunder