The team unloaded all its stars. It's time to build new ones in this new marathon the franchise is running.
Just as most NBA teams worked deals to acquire superstars, the Oklahoma City Thunder traded theirs away in an effort to do another rebuild.
The team became the first team in NBA history to trade two reigning All-NBA players in a single offseason.
The Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets recruited star duos while the Thunder disassembled theirs.
Paul George was traded to the LA Clippers while Russel Westbrook was traded to the Houston Rockets.
What the Thunder get in return
The bright side is that the Thunder get a natural playmaker in Chris Paul. Provided he stays healthy, Paul's veteran presence will bring out the latent potential in each piece left of the team.
The Thunder got Danilo Gallinari in the Paul George trade. Gallinari is a reliable scorer wh will give you 18 to 25 points per game. He can play both the small forward and power forward positions.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is another bright side for the Thunder. The sophomore guard can play both guard positions and can defend the perimeter.
A bunch of draft picks
Oklahoma CIty will have a busy draft for the years to come as they got a bunch of draft picks on top of theirs.
The Thunder received:
2021: Most favorable of Rockets (top-four protected), Thunder and Heat first-round picks
2021: Second-most favorable of Rockets (top-four protected), Thunder and Heat first-round picks
2022: Clippers first-round pick
2023: Heat first-round pick (top-14 protected for three years then unprotected in 2026)
2023: Swap rights with Clippers first-round pick
2024: Clippers first-round pick
2024: Rockets first-round pick (top-four protected)
2025: Swap rights with Rockets first-round pick (top-10 protected) or Clippers first-round pick
2026: Clippers first-round pick
2026: Rockets first-round pick (top-four protected)
2021: Most favorable of Rockets (top-four protected), Thunder and Heat first-round picks
2021: Second-most favorable of Rockets (top-four protected), Thunder and Heat first-round picks
2022: Clippers first-round pick
2023: Heat first-round pick (top-14 protected for three years then unprotected in 2026)
2023: Swap rights with Clippers first-round pick
2024: Clippers first-round pick
2024: Rockets first-round pick (top-four protected)
2025: Swap rights with Rockets first-round pick (top-10 protected) or Clippers first-round pick
2026: Clippers first-round pick
2026: Rockets first-round pick (top-four protected)
With this incredible collection of resources, the Thunder must invest more into their trainers and scouts as this is obviously going to be a lengthy rebuild.
Dark horses?
Don't comletely count the Thunder out. They still have enough pieces to win a decent amount of games. It's only a question of qualifying in such a stacked Western Conference.
The Thunder didn't fall far back after Kevin Durant's departure. They still won in the high 40s and made the playoffs. The better teams bounced them out of the first round the last three years though.
Westbrook was still able to deliver induvidual statistics but the supporting cast was bad. Paul George was the only bright side but now they are gone.
Paul can still hang with the rest of the league. If Gallinari enjoyed being a semi go-to guy with the Denver Nuggets and LA Clippers, he'll enjoy the added number of touches he's getting enxt season.
Steven Adams will definitely get to play his interior strengts more now that he does not have to give away some of his rebounds to Westbrook.
Oklahoma City’s gained from the Clippers' desperation. The Thunder now has a lot of assets to rebuild.
Where will Oklahoma City Thunder place in the Western Conference? Will their current lineup do enough or will they do a complete rebuild? Let us know your thoughts.
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