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Dion Waiters, the Thunder’s biggest loss of the offseason

By Tony Heim

May 22, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Dion Waiters (3) reacts with fans during the second quarter against the Golden State Warriors in game three of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
May 22, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Dion Waiters (3) reacts with fans during the second quarter against the Golden State Warriors in game three of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 23, 2017; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat guard Dion Waiters (11) reacts after making the game winning basket against the Golden State Warriors during the second half at American Airlines Arena. The Heat defeated the Golden State Warriors 105-102. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 23, 2017; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat guard Dion Waiters (11) reacts after making the game winning basket against the Golden State Warriors during the second half at American Airlines Arena. The Heat defeated the Golden State Warriors 105-102. Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /

Dion Waiters…gone but never forgotten.

Before you read another word, I want you to take 30 seconds and look at the above picture. I’ll wait.

…

You may be asking what made Dion Waiters an early candidate for Meme of the Year. If not, you already know that Waiters is a living legend for his performance last night. Especially this shot and the ensuing celebration.

https://twitter.com/TitanicHoops/status/823739611239288832

As fate so has it, Russell Westbrook also hit a game winning shot last night.

This was not a coincidence folks. This was a sign from God. Dion deserves to be in Oklahoma City, running rampant in the second unit with Enes Kanter. But Sam Presti’s decision to withdraw Waiter’s qualifying offer this summer made that nearly impossible.

The move made sense because the Thunder absolutely had to sign Westbrook to a contract extension. But seeing how Dion is playing-especially the past few games-have given me yet another reason to be a sad Thunder fan.

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Dion would be perfect for this version of the Thunder. His presence would allow Victor Oladipo to almost exclusively play with Russ. More importantly, he’d give the bench the perimeter playmaker they desperately need.

Cameron Payne is great, but he’s not necessarily a scorer. Dion is. Teams would have to respect his driving ability in a Kanter screen & roll. But the beauty with the new Dion is he’s looking to pass more often.

Waiters is averaging 3.7 assists per game, one more than his career average and the first time he’s been over 3 since his Cleveland days. Sure the shooting numbers are still around 40%, but he’s doing that on more shots per game. Oh and he’s playing against NBA starters.

But what really hurts about this all is that Dion wanted to be here. Seriously listen to what he had to say once the season was over.

Okay I was lying. There’s more to the story. Dion’s contract with the Heat is a 1 year, 2.9 million dollar deal. That’s 3.3 million less than his contract offer from the Thunder. Even when Presti rescinded the offer, OKC still had the ability to sign him. They have the space, but somewhere along the line a bridge was burned.

That’s what hurts. Dion literally said “They helped me become a better person off the court. It’s not about basketball.” Yet somehow he couldn’t sign a 1 year, 2.9 million dollar deal with the Thunder.

I don’t know what happened. And I honestly don’t want to know. But it’s sad.

The consolation prize is that he seems to be doing well in Miami. The Heat aren’t contending any time soon, which means they will have money to spend. Hopefully they do what Oklahoma City couldn’t.

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