The OKC Thunder are in the midst of a full-scale rebuild. With Sam Presti at the helm, the Thunder have compiled a historic amount of draft capital, a rising star in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and an Interesting buzzword… “timeline.”
This word has been tossed around by every OKC Thunder fan, media member, national media folks, and everyone in-between, but I am not sure how many understand what the timeline means.
Defining the timeline for the OKC Thunder
To be frank, as we sit under 24 hours away from the 2021 NBA Draft, I am not sure Sam Presti himself knows when this rebuild will end. Surely, they will not be making a playoff push during the 2021-22 NBA Season, but past that? Who knows.
The rise of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to All-Star caliber, borderline top 15 or 20 caliber player in the association a year ago, could accelerate the dates a little bit. We also could see SGA shipped off during draft night. That (low) possibility, the seven cups of coffee (and counting), plus sleep deprivation has my stomach in a whirl.
When the national media discusses the Kentucky product “not fitting the timeline” it is easy to cast them to the side as being uninformed, hating a small market team, or just flat wrong. “He is only 23!” OKC Thunder fans cry out into the void.
While the efficient guard is only 23, will sign a max rookie-scale extension this offseason, and will get even better as he enters his prime, that does not mean Shai Gilgeous-Alexander does, or does not, fit the timeline.
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When discussing the fit regarding SGA or anyone else, it is not about age. Just as James Bouknight being 21 years old vs Jonathan Kuminga being 18 years old will not be a deciding factor in who Presti selects if the team stays at six.
The timeline is about controllable years not a player’s age. For SGA, he will sign a five-year extension in early August leaving him with six controllable years with the franchise.
With the OKC Thunder’s 2022 NBA Draft pick being lottery-protected, it is safe to assume remaining a lottery-bound team will be a priority at the risk of shipping that selection to the Atlanta Hawks.
That is a year wasted, of the six, to have SGA on a championship-level team in Bricktown.
Let’s assume the organization gets the NBA Lottery luck that they did not this offseason, well the 2022-23 slate will be filled with young players trying to gel, likely struggling to close games, and more losing.
Now, down to four years of club control, it is time for Presti to go all-in on an eventual disgruntled NBA star. With this being the first year of the team splashing onto the playoff scene, it is reasonable to project they fall short of a title.
You can see where this is going. The cards are in Sam Presti’s hands. While Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s age will never be an issue in building a title contender, his controllable years might. Maybe SGA bucks the trend electing to stay longer than his rookie-scale extension, but that is something that small-market teams do not have the luxury of betting on.
At the end of the day, it is a gamble worth taking. Always bet on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.