Piece by: Curtis Coleman
Saying that April 2019 was different from today would be a gross understatement. Back then you would get weird looks for walking into a store wearing a mask, now it happens when you aren’t wearing one.
That being said, the basketball landscape has changed significantly since then also. Back then the Warriors were the undisputed title favorites, LeBron missed the playoffs for his first season as a Laker and Damian Lillard was entering the playoffs with a chip on his shoulder after being upset and swept by the Pelicans in 2018. However, no team has undergone more changes than the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In 2019, the Thunder entered the playoffs as the sixth seed, Paul George just finished third in the MVP voting and was coming off what was arguably his best season as a pro. There were even some who believed the Thunder would upset the third-seeded Portland Trailblazers (I’m looking at you, Richard Jefferson). That didn’t happen.
The Thunder were beaten in five games and in historic fashion as Damian Lillard averaged 33 ppg including 50 in the closeout game with a thirty-five-foot step back series-winning shot. Two months later, the Thunder decided to tear it all down.
Paul George was traded to the Clippers for five first-round picks as well as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Danillo Gallinari. Westbrook was sent to Houston for Chris Paul, two first-round picks, and two swaps. At the time, this was already seen as a massive haul but then the next season the unthinkable happened.
Chris Paul, who was seen as someone in the twilight of his career led the Thunder to a game seven against his old team. He raised his stock so much that instead of having negative value, Chris was one of the most sought-after trade candidates during the offseason.
As of today, the Thunder have 34 picks that they have acquired since 2019. They have the youngest team in the league and have already begun to find players they like such as Shai and their two rookies Aleksej Pokusevski and Theo Maledon. The Thunder’s general manager Sam Presti has managed to make sound decisions at every step along the way to right now but he can’t become content with that.
There will come a time when the Thunder have the pieces to make the Grand Slam trade, A trade that will put them back into the title conversation for the first time since Kevin Durant left. For the sake of their fan base, I hope they make it because I know a certain fanbase who is getting very tired of their GM not pulling the trigger(Sorry Celtics fans).