Thunderous Intentions
Fansided

OKC Thunder TIP3 queries 8 points, 9 seconds on Pacers

By Tamberlyn Richardson

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - OCTOBER 25: Paul George #13 of the OKC Thunder playing defense during a game against the Indiana Pacers at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on October 25, 2017 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - OCTOBER 25: Paul George #13 of the OKC Thunder playing defense during a game against the Indiana Pacers at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on October 25, 2017 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 7
Next
OKC Thunder vs. Pacers
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – DECEMBER 10: Victor Oladipo /

Hughes offers his take on Oladipo and the infamous trade:

I always looked at this deal as the right risk to take for Sam Presti and the Thunder, even if George left after a year and OKC didn’t win more than a playoff series or two. With how Oladipo has played thus far, it may be impossible for Indiana to “lose” this trade. But, if George re-signed with OKC, it would be impossible for them to the lose the deal as well.

At the end of the day, having two stars in Westbrook and George (no disrespect to ‘Melo) is going to make the Thunder a draw for free agent stars–or, at the very least, high-level starters. They are going to have a chance with those two on board.

Indiana fans have been waiting for Oladipo to slip for weeks now and he’s actually gotten better. Coming off a career-high 47 points, it’s starting to feel like this is the new reality. In his last nine contests, Oladipo has scored below 20 points just twice–one coming in a blowout win of the Knicks, the other in a blowout loss to the Rockets.

He’s getting better from three-point range, shooting 45.8 percent on 9.6 attempts per game in December. He’s shooting 45.5 percent on pull-up threes, which is a higher percentage than Stephen Curry has recorded in a full season since at least 2013-14 (that’s as far back as NBA’s tracking data goes). Obviously Oladipo is shooting way less than Curry, but still, if that holds up, maybe the rest of his game does too.

Home/Thunder News