The First Day of NBA Free Agency Was A Big Win For The OKC Thunder
They said it was just a gap year experience. They said that none of it mattered, he was gonna join the Lakers as soon as he was a free agent anyway. But then Russell Westbrook flew eight hours back to Oklahoma from his family holiday to throw a big-ass party to celebrate free agency (and his fat contract extension kicking in, for sure), inviting members of the Thunder front office, and it was there on stage in front of everyone that Paul George announced he was staying in OKC.
So many questions about that party. Word is that there were non-disclosure agreements signed by all attendees. Of which there were 500 people that attended, one of whom being Nas. Yes, that Nas, who was booked to perform. It was held at the delightfully sounding Lake Arcadia and invitations apparently read: “The FOMO will be real.” Dunno if Steven Adams managed to make it back for the shindig or not, not even sure if Carmelo Anthony was there, but goddamn that thing looked legit. And, ah, safe to say the bash was more than just a recruitment tool… this was a bloody celebration.
Not only did Paul George opt to stay in OKC but he laid it all down with a four-year $137m deal. Exactly a year after he was traded to the Thunder, he dropped the ol’ hancock on the dotted line and offered to stay. Three years and a player option, so they say.
This is just absolutely massive for the OKC franchise. James Harden was named League MVP recently, capping the coronations for the full trio of young stars that took them to the 2012 Finals yet only one of those stars ever recommitted long term. Harden was notoriously traded after the Thunder hesitated on offering him a max deal. Contrary to the common meme, there were other reasons, including Harden’s fit in the offence and his bench role. Let’s be honest, he wasn’t the same player he became in Houston while with OKC – his career kinda needed that move. But he still got traded.
Then two years ago Kevin Durant upped and left for Golden State. Russell Westbrook stayed and re-signed but if Paul George had left after Sam Presti went all in on getting him into town then who really knows where things would have gone. All options would’ve been open… including trading Russell Westbrook. Not saying that ever would have happened but it would have at least become a topic of conversation. They tried the Westbrook + Others formula once before. Russ won MVP and the team was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. We know how that story ends already.
When OKC traded for Paul George they knew it was a one year thing. But they then spent that entire year rolling out the red carpet for him, doing everything they could to entice him to stay. It was a 12-month recruiting scheme. And, while that came with the massive risk of letting Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis walk for one year of PG and no playoff series wins, it was always a gamble worth taking. Because we’ve already acknowledged that they needed a second star. He might be the patron saint of The Niche Cache but Steven Adams cannot be the second best player on a championship team. And if they hadn’t had a year of relationships with him already then do you think OKC is even getting a meeting with Pacers free agent Paul George right now? Probably not, to be honest.
Instead with the way things have worked out it was the Los Angeles Lakers who didn’t even get a meeting with the bugger. Magic Johnson got fined half a mill for tampering with PG and he didn’t even get a meeting! Based on his comments at his exit interview Paul George was always keen to stay but the common opinion had been that he was destined for the Lakers for so long that it was inevitable. Turns out that basketball twitter doesn’t always get it right… who knew?
Mate, and we’re talking at least three years too! PG coulda taken a two year deal, with a player option third, and then opted out with ten years of NBA experience when he’d be eligible for an even bigger deal yet here we are with that extra year in tow. Shout out to Paul George. What that tells you is he’s happy in OKC, he loves a bit of Russ, there’s no drama about it being a ‘small market’ (we’re all following this from Aotearoa so really how small can any NBA franchise market be?), he believes in this roster’s potential and it ain’t all about the money.
Emphasis on that last point. He’s still making up to $137m, how much cash can one fella need? Paul George just proved a point that continually slides on by the salary cap experts (as talented as they are) and that’s that getting the biggest imaginable paycheque isn’t always the priority. All those other points matter too. Paul George has come back from one of the most horrific injuries you’ll ever see on a basketball court and that extra year’s security makes a big difference. This is a man who knows how quickly it can all be taken away from him.
As for the Thunder organisation, they now for the first time in a long time have two superstar talents locked down for the foreseeable future and can get back to constructing a team around them. Hell, not only that but they’ve also got Steven Adams and Andre Roberson locked down too and there’s your defensive anchors. They may have hesitated on hitting the luxury tax for James Harden but they weren’t about to make the same error again here. This is going to be one of the heftiest NBA wage bills in history.
Hey and don’t sleep on the fact that they also managed to bring back Jerami Grant, arguably their best bench performer down the stretch of last season, a guy who can defend multiple positions and is good for a dozen points on his day too. Super useful player who made big strides last year and should make another leap next time. Three years and $27m for that dude.
There’s still the question of what to do with Carmelo Anthony’s obscene $27.9m salary but let it be known that this Thunder squad believes in The Andre Roberson Effect. That was one of the top starting fives in the league, even with Melo, before Roberson got hurt. He may be a clunker of a scorer but his clamping defence frees up everyone else. Imagine playing the Warriors, you’ve got Roberson on Durant. Then you’ve got Adams working on Draymond or switched onto Curry. Paul George is then working on Klay or Iggy or something. Paul Freakin’ George. Guarding, like, the third option there. Against the Dubs that doesn’t really make a difference, admittedly, but against every other team that’s an absolute feast.
Patrick Patterson, Alex Abrines and Terrance Ferguson are all returning. They just drafted three dudes in the second round who all have a chance of cracking the roster. Devon Hall has decent 3&D potential, Kevin Hervey is a typically Thunder athletic gun (albeit with some bad injury history) and Hamidou Diallo is an Andre Roberson clone – great defender but poor shooter, though that’s what this bench needs as much as anything. Chuck in the lessons learned from the 2017-18 season and a healthy star defender and there’s reason to think they can threaten the second round this time.
At this price they’d bloody have to.
Be a legend and support The Niche Cache with a cheeky whack on an ad
Be an even bigger legend and support TNC by doing us good on Patreon