While athletes are the ones who perform and decide the outcome of games, the foundation of any team’s success starts behind the scenes. It’s the front office — tasked with making critical decisions, managing resources, and assembling the roster — that shapes the direction of a franchise.

The Oklahoma City Thunder exemplifies this balance, with its front office being a direct reflection of the ideal strategic vision and commitment to excellence. That’s why the Thunder has earned the fifth most wins of any NBA team since its inaugural season in Oklahoma City and has posted a winning record in 12 of 16 campaigns. The Thunder has reached the playoffs in all but five seasons since the relocation which a level of consistency that very few franchises in any sport are able to maintain, especially with the modern rates of player mobility and parity across leagues.

But how does the Thunder’s front office stack up against some of the other premier groups in sports?

The Athletic recently conducted a comprehensive survey, polling 40 executives and coaches across the four major professional leagues — the MLB, NBA, NFL, and NHL — to identify the best front office in all of sports.

The verdict? The Oklahoma City Thunder claimed the top spot.

The survey respondents — in this case, the executives and coaches — were asked to rank the top five front offices, in order, in their respective sports. The Athletic polled the same number of executives and coaches (40) each time and used the same scoring system to rank front offices. First-place votes were worth 10 points, second-place seven, third-place five, fourth-place three and fifth-place one.

The output of this survey provided a pulse for which front offices are viewed as the best by their direct competitors.

1. Oklahoma City Thunder: 354 points (29 first-place votes)
2. Los Angeles Dodgers: 284 points (19 first-place votes)
3. Baltimore Ravens: 259 points (15 first-place votes)
4. Tampa Bay Rays: 258 (12 first-place votes)
5. Dallas Stars: 251 (17 first-place votes)

Not only did Oklahoma City’s front office earn the most points, but the Thunder was the only NBA team in the top five. The Boston Celtics (250 points) finished No. 6 in this survey, followed by the Miami Heat (114 points) at No. 14, the Memphis Grizzlies (64 points) at No. 18, and finally, the Minnesota Timberwolves (54 points) at No. 20 to round things out. No other NBA team finished in the top 25.

Thunder General Manager Sam Presti and his staff clearly have the respect of their peers with the level of success the team has seen in OKC. Not only has the Thunder been one of the most consistently competitive franchises in the league since the inaugural 2008-09 season, but the front office has put together multiple iterations of contenders through the years. They’ve adjusted the roster as talent has come and gone, while also choosing the optimal time to re-tool when needed. Given Oklahoma City is a small market, a brilliant front office that makes smart moves and evaluates talent at an elite level is even more paramount. This wouldn’t be possible without the alignment and shared vision of Governor Clay Bennett and the rest of the front office.

With this current Thunder roster that Presti has been the primary architect of, a chance at winning a title is already here again— especially with reigning NBA Coach of the Year Mark Daigneault at the helm. But what’s most impressive is that Oklahoma City is still one of the youngest teams in the league while also controlling the future with its draft capital. The Thunder’s front office has built a championship-level team while equipping itself with the tools to continue improving — organically with internal development and inorganically via the draft, trades, and free agency — and maintaining elite levels of long-term success.