Here's my first take at 8 team pods. The names are obviously just stand ins but tie to certain themes. OKC is a tough put in any group but had to make these balanced 4 team pods, so I did the best I could.
New England
NY Knicks
Brooklyn Nets
Boston Celtics
Phi 76ers
Coastal Seaboard
Washington Wizards
Charlotte Hornets
Orlando Magic
Miami Heat
Great Lakes East
Toronto Raptors
Cleveland Cavaliers
Indiana Pacers
Detroit Pistons
Great Lakes North
Chicago Bulls
Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota TimberWolves
OKC Thunder(biggest where to put outlier)
Southern Flavor: BBQ, Beale, and Bourbon
Atlanta Hawks
Memphis Grizzlies
New Orleans Pelicans
Houston Rockets
Desert West
Dallas Mavericks
San Antonio Spurs
Phoenix Suns
Las Vegas
California Dreaming
Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Clippers
Golden State Warriors
Sacramento Kings
NorthWest Passage/Oregon Trail
Portland TrailBlazers
Seattle SuperSonics
Utah Jazz
Denver Nuggets
From a fan rivalalry perspective(current NBA rivals but also historical rivalries based on region, culture and other sports, I think there is massive potential in these pods)
You'd play 6 games against your three division opponents. They would always be grouped in pairs of two, whether back to back games or with a travel day or two involved. You'd play 2 or 3 games against every other division, with the divisions you played three times per year being closer geographical fits, so you'd never be playing the Laker or Sonics three times a year for example.
This could add up to 82 games or they could scale back to somewhere between 74-78 games main schedule to accommodate the in season tourney they're talking about and continued tweaks to the Play In tourney.