Why trading Russell Westbrook is the Thunder’s best move
By Rich Condon
Where the Thunder stand right now
As of right now the Thunder are sitting at 18-12, good for the sixth seed in a loaded Western Conference. Considering the Thunder lost the second best player in the NBA, I’d say that’s pretty darn good.
However, if you look a little deeper, 12 of those 18 wins come against teams with losing records. Against teams that are .500 or better, the Thunder are 6-7. That isn’t terrible, but it isn’t necessarily a sign of postseason success.
RELATED STORY: Who does Russell Westbrook think he is?
Unfortunately Oklahoma City has never been a free agent destination, even with the loaded core that once was. Yes, the Thunder didn’t have the luxury of having cap space to bring someone in, but vets tend to title chase at the end of their career. Just not to OKC.
The previous CBA had just imposed harsh luxury tax penalties and the new Rose Rule allowed players coming off their rookie deals to earn a larger percentage of the team’s salary cap provided they hit certain benchmarks over the course of their first four NBA years. OKC is a small market team, and their inability to pay the stiff luxury tax penalties forced them to move Harden to the Houston Rockets.
Poor timing with the new TV deal and the massive leap in the salary cap was announced somewhat less than a year after this move was made. Effectively forcing the Thunder to lose out on this opportunity.
In addition, with the new Player Designation rule-which enables players going into their 8th or 9th seasons with the team that drafted them to sign for 35% of the salary cap with 8% raises over the duration of the extension (provided they meet certain benchmarks)-the chances of landing blockbuster free agents is going to dwindle significantly.
As presently constructed the Thunder appear to be stuck in the quagmire of the 5-8 seed in the Western Conference: good enough to make a cameo in the playoffs every year, but not quite bad enough to draft from the lottery. Drafting from the lottery, as we know, increases the chance of landing another superstar and making the leap back into the upper echelon of legitimate perennial championship contenders.
As the 7 seed, the Thunder are almost equidistant from the number 1 seeded Golden State Warriors and the last place Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference.