OKC Thunder: Paul George Trade Q and A

Answering questions my brain has come up with in regards to the OKC Thunder acquiring Paul George.

So, um, how did this happen?

Listen, if I knew how it happened, I’d be a millionaire. No one knows how Sam Presti turns nothing into something. I wrote earlier this year that he’s a magician. It was a fictional story. I’m now starting to believe it. I don’t know how he acquired Doug McDermott and Taj Gibson for nothing and I don’t know how he acquired Paul George for very little. Don’t ever let anyone tell you that Presti is a bad general manager. He’s taken risks that haven’t paid off and he’s been capped by unfortunate circumstances and situations, but he’s a great general manager.

How does Presti keep everything a secret?

Because he was the most trustworthy gang member in another life. I would commit crimes with Sam Presti any day of the week. Because if he were to get caught, I know he’s not giving me up. You can torture this man, offer him any deal, give him immunity, whatever. Presti isn’t snitching on anyone. In fact, he’ll point you in the opposite direction of where you need to go just to buy time for the crew. Presti is most definitely about that general manager life.

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Are the Pacers not very smart?

Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis were starters on the sixth seed in the West. Oladipo is 25. Sabonis is 21. They’re not bad players. They’re also not players Oklahoma City needed in order to compete. Oladipo didn’t become the scoring threat we all hoped he would be. He showed flashes, but the inconsistencies were maddening. It’s not all his fault. He was acquired to be a scorer off the bench. Instead, he had to be the secondary scorer and replace Kevin Durant as much as he could. He didn’t get the reps necessary thanks to Westbrook’s ball dominance. He was injured during crucial stretches. Oladipo will be fine in Indiana.

So will Sabonis. He was thrown into the fire. Presti gave up on Ersan Ilyasova quickly, making Sabonis the starter. Domantas was asked to become a stretch four, something he never did in college. He showed signs of being a solid player and he showed signs of being useless. He’ll have more opportunity to grow in Indiana.

But didn’t the Pacers have a better offer?

Probably, but they reportedly wanted to send to him West. I don’t understand that logic. I say take the best offer you can, but what do I know?

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I ask the questions around here.

Right, sorry. Anyway, yes. The Pacers likely had a better offer. But I’m convinced teams are colluding to make Danny Ainge look like the stingiest man in sports history. There’s no other way to explain how you have every first overall pick for the next five years and all you end up with is the third overall pick this year.

Are we a title contender again?

Yes and no. Anytime you have two superstars, you’re a contender. The problem is, the team you’re chasing has four superstars. Steven Adams has to take a big leap and Presti will need to do a bit more. But, things aren’t as bleak as they were heading into last season. This is a team that should be able to go toe-to-toe with any team. The Warriors might be the exception, but I like our chances a lot better

Will Westbrook and George fit?

I think so. I like this fit better than I like the fit of Chris Paul and James Harden in Houston. And I suspect Harden and Paul work things out, just like I suspect Westbrook and George to work things out. Smart players figure it out. Guys who want to win figure it out. Westbrook was willing to sacrifice for Durant far more than anyone without an agenda wants to admit. He’ll sacrifice for George. And I suspect George, who has never played with a player on the level of Westbrook, will sacrifice as well.

There will be growing pains. We’ll be angrily tweeting when one of them misses the game winner. But they’ll figure it out.

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What if Paul George leaves next year?

I’m not ready to think about that.

Why not?

I’m still too excited.

I was promised that all my questions would be answered. Answer my question.

Fine. If George were to leave, it would be unfortunate, but it would also open up a ton of cap space. Getting out of Oladipo’s contract, which looks far worse now than it did when he signed it given his play last year, is a win in and of itself.

This is a risk that Presti felt he had to take. Westbrook is in his prime and stars win in this league. OKC didn’t have to time to hope Oladipo and Sabonis turned into stars. They went out and got a star. Now, they have a year to sell George on Oklahoma City. Maybe it’ll work, maybe it won’t. But it was worth the risk.

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Who would want to stay in Oklahoma City?

No one, according to a lot of people. But Westbrook doesn’t seem to mind it. He’s in a new commercial every week and is a fashion icon. All while playing in Oklahoma City. The organization is going to have a year with Paul George, that’s better than not securing a meeting next offseason. Maybe George changes his mind about Los Angeles. The Lakers have been rumored to get every major star for the last five year. They’ve gotten the number Westbrook wears.

George may find that playing with a contender is fun. If Oklahoma City reaches the conference finals, would he want to give that up to play with the lottery Lakers? He’s going to make more money in Oklahoma City than he can elsewhere and he can still be a star and live in L.A. in the offseason. Westbrook makes it work, there’s no reason why George can’t if he really wants to.

What’s next?

I would assume that Andre Roberson will be re-signed. I would also assume that Taj Gibson will be re-signed. After that, they still have some cap space and a trade chip in Enes Kanter.

I don’t know what Kanter’s value is, but I have 100 percent faith that Presti can turn him into exactly what the team needs. It’s also possible that they keep Kanter. He can still be a valuable contributor off the bench and he’s a guy that everyone on the team likes.

Best trade ever?

Best trade ever.

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