The Problem with the OKC Thunder

The Problem with the OKC Thunder

I have a confession to make I’ve been an OKC Thunder doubter for some time now I mean this team has had some of the best Star cores in NBA history and what do they have to show for it absolutely nothing so obviously when this team blew

It up and went into the biggest NBA rebuild of all time snagging over 20 first round draft picks over the next 10 years I and many other fans were skeptical to say the least but now it’s looking like all those people were wrong the Thunder are now at the top of the

West only behind the Timberwolves and this team looks absolutely special has to somebody H the turn shot toe it it’s with the three at the buzzer TI yeah I think it’s safe to say that this young Thunder team is about to shock everyone but behind the fast rebuild and

Great success is a massive problem for this team one that could blow this entire rebuild up if they don’t make the right decision now you’re probably thinking how could one of the best young teams in the NBA have any problems I mean OKC as an MVP caliber player in

Shay gilis Alexander likely Rookie of the Year in Chad holgren and much more young Talent well to answer that question we have to go back to when this whole thing started during the summer of 2019 it was very apparent that things just weren’t working out in OKC sure

They had great even MVP caliber talent in Westbrook and Paul George but this team just could not win at the highest level but unlike most general managers who at this point would have held to their core Sam pry took a very different approach trading Stars Westbrook and

George to contending teams and in return receiving a plethora of picks and young talents including this one guy on the Clippers named Shay gilis Alexander between all the moves that this team made at one point they had acquired over 20 firstr draft picks including their

Own which is unheard of in the NBA in the upcoming draft alone OKC will likely have four first round picks which leads us to this team’s big problem they they have way too many assets this team already has a very deep roster filled with young Talent so bringing on four

More players from this year’s draft alone just isn’t realistic however although all these assets are currently the Thunder’s biggest problem it’s actually their key to becoming the next NBA Dynasty the Thunder are currently in the position that most general managers could only dream of they have one of the

Best records in the NBA and they have a ton of assets at their disposal to upgrade their roster and become championship favorites won’t realistically be able to use all four of their first round picks this year so how do they move on and become Championship favorites even though Championship

Favorites is a bold statement it is possible for this team to become just that before the trade deadline if they fix their two biggest roster issues as of right now the Thunder have a start of Shay Carson Wallace Josh giddy Jay duub and Chad now this five hasn’t been bad

In fact they have been more than solid but if you’ve been watching Thunder games you would know that this team has two big issues one Josh giddy doesn’t fit well with the starting lineup sure the man is a great playmaker and a half decent Defender but with Shay running

The offense there’s really no need for Giddy and this team would be much better with a three in D Wing that could guard against the opposing team’s best player OKC already has some of the best interior defense with chat holding down the paint so if they elevated their

Defense even a little bit on the perimeter it could put them over the top and make make them Championship favorites the key metric to look at to see if a team is a true Championship Contender is their offensive and defensive rating history continues to show that a championship team almost

Always needs a top 10 defense and offense in order to win it all and lucky for the Thunder there are only three teams in the NBA right now that are top 10 in both the Celtics obviously the Pelicans shockingly and the Thunder themselves yes the Thunder already meet

The equation to become a championship team with the the third best offensive rating and the seventh best defensive rating in the entire NBA like I said the current roster already has deep playoff run written all over them but there are two moves that will give OKC everything

They need to win at the highest level and compete with championship ready teams like the Celtics and the best part is these are actually realistic targets obviously the Thunder don’t want to lean too much one way when it comes to offense and defensive capabilities because they’re so good at both right

Now so they need players that can improve their rating on both sides of the ball which is rare but not unheard of the first player that is literally a no-brainer for this team to make a move for is none other than Jeremy Grant Grant is literally the definition of a

Three and D Wing that the Thunder could start over Josh giddy Grant can lock down on defense when needed and is shooting over 41% from three on 5 and a half attempts per game for context there are only eight players shooting better from three at higher volume those being

James Harden Paul George Luke Ard Dante Divan chinzo Bronson McCullum Beasley and Grayson Allen pretty much all of these guys are great but aside from Grayson Allen and maybe Paul George Grant is the best defender in this group by a mile and the Thunder could easily

Make a move for him the Trailblazers are going nowhere with their current roster and they need to do what the Thunder did in 2019 cash in any chips that are helping them win games right now and fully blow up their team so why not trade Grant to the Thunder for a few

First round picks this year and maybe some young Talent like Josh gidy or poku the Thunder Trio of Shay jayd and Chad are already all averaging nearly 20 points per game so just imagine the offensive leap if they got Grant who’s also averaging 21 points per game obviously his production on the

Offensive end would go down a bit because the Thunder have way more Talent than Portland but the defense alone validates this move for OKC I mean just look at the last 3 andd player who was traded in OG anobi the Knicks instantly took a leap despite giving up great

Young talent and quickly Barrett and I can almost guarantee the same would be for OKC grants is also locked in on a contract until 2028 so he would be locked into place for this thunder core and help them win for the next five six maybe even seven years down the road if

They extend him but that’s not where it ends for this team because there’s one more young star player that would undoubtedly give OKC the best starting lineup in the entire league and possibly solidify them as a dynasty for the next 5 years some people have talked about

Kevin Durant going back to OKC others have discussed guys like Donovan Mitchell but I feel like no one is talking about lry marinan the Jazz are in the same situation as the Blazers they need to pull the plug on their best players and start building for the

Future lucky for the Thunder marinin is on the timeline of Shay and would be a perfect fit for this Thunder roster don’t believe me let’s look at the film marinin is everything that this team needs he can make cuts and give sheay easy passes for easy buckets he can take

Advantage of matchups against small smaller forwards in the paints or stretch the floor against big men and maybe most importantly he can run the transition and get easy Second Chance buckets on Miss shots people may not think of him as an elite Defender but his defensive rating of 116 this season

Which is similar to guys like Jimmy Butler Kevin Durant and Draymond Green would say otherwise Lowry seems like he could be the piece that completes the Thunder puzzle especially if paired with Jeremy Grant on the wing as well so yes the Thunder do have a problem all the

Assets they’ve stowed away are starting to be too much for this team but lucky for them they can turn this problem into one of the best young cores in the entire NBA and maybe even create a dynasty if they play their cards right but there is another young player who is

So good that he might be the next face of the NBA in no time Anthony Edwards has officially taken the Superstar leap and how he did it is honestly pretty surprising click here to watch and see why Ant-Man could be the next face of the NBA

#nba #basketball #okcthunder #shaigilgeousalexander

The Oklahoma City Thunder are exceeding expectations this season with their young core of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren. But with 4 first-round picks in the upcoming draft, they have too many assets. To become true championship contenders, they should trade for defensive wings like Jerami Grant and Lauri Markkanen. This would give them one of the best starting lineups in the NBA and turn their draft pick problem into a potential dynasty. The video also looks at how the Thunder rebuilt so quickly after trading Westbrook and Paul George.