Although his time with the OKC Thunder has not gone according to plan; Patrick Patterson has remained professional, TI reviews his second season in Thunder Blue.
Before each OKC Thunder home match, power forward Patrick Patterson and center Steven Adams can be seen boxing one another out in the paint, battling for rebounds. It’s become somewhat of a ritual for the two big men. A subtle aspect which could easily be overlooked; but it sheds light on just how close-knit the Thunder’s chemistry was.
Once the Thunder acquired Markieff Morris via the NBA’s buyout market, it became clear rather quickly backup big man Patrick Patterson would lose minutes. Unfortunately for Pat, he was cut out of the rotation entirely.
Prior to Morris’ arrival, Patterson had not missed a single game in a Thunder uniform. Durability and consistent availability are valuable traits in a player. Sadly, the Thunder did not reward Pat for possessing such traits, from February 28th (Morris’ first game) forward Pat appeared in six games tallying a limited 21 minutes. Patterson did not see time in any of the Thunder’s five playoff contests versus the Portland Trail Blazers.
During his exit interview, Pat noted that coach Billy Donovan did approach him and let him know ahead of time they were looking at Morris, and they were honest about what would happen if Keef, was indeed added.
That kind of honesty and openness is rare in the workforce. Athletes often ask for their employer to be straight forward with them. In this instance, the Thunder was with Patterson. That level of courtesy could go a long way with Pat, and other impending or future free agents.