3. Huestis, We Have a Problem
There is nothing more in line with the Thunder DNA than promoting Josh Huestis from the D-League straight into the starting line-up. In fact, Roberson earned his starting gig under exactly the same conditions.
In 2014, the team received solid minutes from Thabo Selfolosha but weren’t willing to pay over the top for him. They convinced him to at least bring back some draft picks on the way out in the form of a sign-and-trade deal with Atlanta. In exchange, Donovan brought Roberson straight from the D League, and he has gone from strength to strength since.
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There is clear precedence for this move. Billy Donovan himself acknowledged Huestis was assigned to the D League because he needed to adjust to playing small forward. No doubt, Huestis is raw, maybe even rawer than when Roberson himself entered the league.
But raw is good. Unless the Thunder move any of Adams or Oladipo, the team is not set to contend within the next few years. The Thunder can afford to deal with a younger version of Roberson if that means tax savings.
How Is The Process?
The question is, how ready is Huestis? We know for a start that Huestis is bigger and more physical than Roberson. That is important because it opens up one key attribute Roberson brought this season – flexibility.
Imagine a Westbrook-Oladipo-McDermott-Huestis-Grant line-up. The front court will not offer much shooting. But, neither does the current starting pair of Gibson and Adams. In exchange, this line-up could legitimately be a remake of last season’s uber-small line-up, at least on defense.
In this scenario, Huestis would be the one man holding this line-up together. Even if the opposition trots out the likes of Ryan Anderson at center, Huestis would have no problem switching from shooting guard to center.
But this is all just dreaming. The ideal scenario is Huestis is already fully-developed and waiting to be unleashed. How far he falls short of that hope will influence how much of the bitter pill Presti will be willing to bite with Roberson’s contract.