The Oklahoma City Thunder have recently been caught up in a league-wide controversy: tanking.
The time of year has come, around the All-Star Break, where fans, teams, and the commissioner alike all begin to rail against the yearly phenomenon of teams nosediving in the standings to improve their chances in the lottery.
It was especially notable at this year's trade deadline. Both the Utah Jazz and the Washington Wizards made blockbuster moves, for Jaren Jackson Jr. and Anthony Davis respectively, only for those players to ultimately sit the rest of the season out in a clear tanking effort.
The Thunder are involved in this controversy in two ways. Firstly, they own the Jazz's first-round pick this season, but it's top-eight protected. If Utah succeeds in their tanking efforts, Oklahoma City loses a high-value draft pick.
Secondly, it was reported by multiple media members that the Thunder are going through backchannels to put pressure on the league to prevent this from happening.
Sure, having a top-ten pick from Utah would be nice. But at this point, it's a luxury for Oklahoma City. Their real prize represents a much higher goal.
The Thunder don't need the draft picks
It's not as though these things are directly affecting the performance of players on the court. They're relatively insulated from league matters, and things like this matter much more to fans than they do to them.
However, heading into the All-Star Break, the Thunder were 5-5 in their last 10 games. They've been severely plagued with injuries, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Ajay Mitchell remaining out through the Break.
The organization's focus needs to be solely on finding their footing again and making a bid for a second championship.
Oklahoma City, moreover, will have (at the very least) two first-round selections in this year's draft. If both the Jazz's and the Clipper's protections kick in, these will be at low slots in the first round.
My question is this. Who truly cares?
The Thunder have a tall task ahead of them in replenishing their stock of talent as they hit a financial brick wall this offseason. Having high-value draft selections coming into the building would be a massive boon to this effort.
Yet the organization has shown an aptitude to find excellent players wherever they're selecting. For a team already stocked with talent, what's needed is complementary role players who can jump in and find their slot in the rotation almost immediately.
Again, the organization's focus and the team's focus are two entirely different things. Nevertheless, this tanking controversy is merely a distraction from what the ultimate mission should be for the Thunder.