OKC Thunder: Experimental lineup Oklahoma City should consider

Tonight marks the first game of the season for the OKC Thunder. Though no official word has been released about a potential starting lineup, we at TI believe they should consider getting experimental.

Though it may have been prolonged due to a COVID-19 cancellation, the OKC Thunder take to the hardwood tonight, marking their debut game for the 2020-21 campaign.

This season will be all about developing their young core for the future, as Sam Presti and co. have the team embarking on a rebuild which, by the looks of things, is off to a very impressive start.

Already in tow is their franchise player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as well as a bevy of draft capital over the next several years. In fact, their start to the rebuild is so good, that some believe that a tank may not be entirely necessary, as they are so far ahead of the traditional trajectory that they could still aim to compete in the meantime and they’d be right on course.

That said, fans are more open to a tankathon and aiming for the highest pick in the upcoming draft, so a 2019-20-esque season would not be appreciated by the majority.

Either way, whatever their future holds, it all starts tonight with their outing against the Charlotte Hornets.

Though no official word has come out about what kind of starting-five Mark Daigneault plans on rolling with, being that this year is somewhat of a wash anyway, we at TI believe he has the perfect opportunity to get creative with his rotation decisions.

An experimental lineup we’d say should be considered for their opening day lineup would look like the following:

• PG – George Hill
• SG – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
• SF – Darius Bazley
• PF – Mike Muscala
• C – Al Horford

Now, while it shouldn’t come as a surprise that we have SGA, Bazley, and Horford listed above, the experimental aspect of this lineup is tossing Hill and rookie  Aleksej Pokuševski into the mix.

The reason why we believe George Hill should be considered for the team’s starting point guard is that it would allow Gilgeous-Alexander to continue his more off-ball style of play that helped him become a rising star last season.

Though the veteran floor general is no Chris Paul, he could, in theory, serve in the same role as the primary ball-handler, leaving Shai with the opportunity to roam freely on the court, looking for scoring opportunities off-ball while also giving him another option in the drive-and-kick game (something he seems to have an affinity for) when in possession of the rock as well.

In all likelihood, the OKC Thunder will slot the 22-year-old in as the point guard in the starting lineup, but we feel his game is best served at the two. The idea of thrusting Hill into the lineup would allow him to continue on a playing-path similar to last year.

As for inserting Mike Muscala in at the four, it would provide the team with another floor spacer up front in the starting lineup (shoots a career 36.8 percent from deep) alongside Horford, allowing the team to stay big down low on defense while also playing a five-out scheme on offense.

Arguably the most underappreciated player on this OKC Thunder squad, perhaps this rebuilding season could be a solid opportunity for the 29-year-old to start consistently finding himself cracking the starting lineup.