OKC Thunder: Former player spoils Game 1 – but not the one you think

A former OKC Thunder player factored large in the loss to the Rockets – just not the player you think.

When the dust settled and the first-round playoff series was set it felt like we should’ve seen this OKC Thunder – Houston Rockets matchup coming. After all, this entire year has felt like a dream or a fairy tale.

It all began this past offseason when the former son of the OKC Thunder Russell Westbrook was traded after spending the entirety of his career in Oklahoma City. Worse, he was joining another former Thunder player – James Harden.

That trade of course sent back Chris Paul to the OKC who went on to take the reigns and reformulate the team with a scrappy, no quit, team-first attitude.

As a side note, fans still debate to this day if trading Harden to Houston was the reason the Kevin Durant Westbrook era fell apart. One thing is pretty certain, it’s doubtful another team will ever have three future MVP’s in their development years all on the same team ever again.

In addition, this past season, Serge Ibaka also of that magical KD-Russ era won his first championship with the Toronto Raptors and was a big part of the success. When things like Ibaka’s success, Durant’s injury, or the trade of Westbrook occur you can’t help but reflect back to the team that went to the first (and to this point only) trip to the NBA Finals.

So, the stage was set for this first-round series between the Thunder and Rockets. This with Chris Paul having a good reason to want to wreak revenge on his former club and the two former Thunder superstars looking at OKC as a stepping stone on the way to claiming their own championship.

Former OKC Thunder player Jeff Green pushes Rockets over the top

What got somewhat ignored was another former OKC player who is also on the Rockets and was a pivotal part of the young era Thunder – – Jeff Green.

He was drafted by Boston, traded to Seattle, and moved to OKC with Durant becoming what at the time many thought was the big three with KD, and Westbrook. He was also best friends with Durant.

Two years into the franchise though with the youngsters already fast-tracking toward success with the additions of Ibaka and Harden he was traded to Boston to add Kendrick Perkins for some veteran savvy and playoff championship experience.

Green suffered a major setback in Boston and had to undergo open-heart surgery to repair an aortic root aneurysm. That surgery could’ve derailed his career but he worked his way back. The forward never rose to the level many expected in his first few seasons at OKC Instead, he became more of a journeyman playing a supporting role on nine different teams. Houston marks the sixth team he’s played on in the last five seasons.

And yet other than James Harden if there was one player to point to on the Rockets who was the x-factor that pushed Houston over the top to grab the victory it was Jeff Green.

He was the second-leading scorer for Houston with 22 points in game one. Moreover, on a team without a true big his six rebounds (also second-most) were a big help.

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Heading into the match, no doubt Billy Donovan was focused on what Ben McLemore and Austin Rivers would offer off the bench. Instead, it was Jeff Green who feasted. In fact, his 22 points almost single-handedly matched the entire Thunder bench unit who produced a cumulative 27 points.

All this time fans expected there to be emotions involved with Westbrook, Harden, and Paul. What we neglected to consider was whether Green harbored any resentment over being traded off that young OKC Thunder crew who went to the NBA Finals.

Perhaps resentment is too harsh. Green has always been one of the good guys but that doesn’t negate his desire to perform well against his old team.

Moving forward, you can bet Billy Donovan will be adding Green to his game plan if he hadn’t already. If the Thunder can limit him the same way they did McLemore and Rivers they’ll have a far better chance of winning Game 2.

To wit, they’ll lace them up tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. EST (2:30 pm CT). For those interested in the player grades click here and the three takeaways click here.

We’ll be back with the preview for tomorrow’s match but stay connected with Thunderous Intentions as we keep you in the loop during the OKC Thunder playoff coverage.