{"id":2778,"date":"2016-07-10T14:33:05","date_gmt":"2016-07-10T19:33:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fredsportsextra.com\/?p=2778"},"modified":"2016-09-20T00:32:39","modified_gmt":"2016-09-20T05:32:39","slug":"blake-griffin-to-oklahoma-city-it-could-put-the-thunder-back-into-contention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fredsportsextra.com\/?p=2778","title":{"rendered":"Blake Griffin to Oklahoma City? It could put the Thunder back into contention"},"content":{"rendered":"
Various trade rumors concerning the Oklahoma City Thunder are being talked about in the NBA sports world. With the departure of Kevin Durant, the pecking order for the Thunder has\u00a0fallen from one of the top four teams in the Association to a\u00a0less potent\u00a0playoff contender. In other words, don’t\u00a0put OKC in the short list of teams expecting to make a run for\u00a0an NBA championship\u00a0for a while. \u00a0At best, in the ever changing Western Conference, Golden State has the inside tract to take their second title in three years in 2016-17. Along with a strong San Antonio Spurs club, add in the (ever present and star filled)\u00a0Los Angeles Clippers, the improving (and surprising Portland Trail Blazers), and continual better than average Dallas Mavs, Houston Rockets, and Memphis Grizzlies., the Thunder will have to work hard to gain\u00a0the foothold they have enjoyed the past seven seasons.\u00a0 For Thunder fans, a bitter pill to swallow<\/strong>.<\/h6>\n

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Blake Griffin to Oklahoma City this summer could be the one trade that puts the Thunder back on the road of viability, more than just a good also ran team.\u00a0 Griffin, a star in this league, a proven top fifteen player, and the one player good enough to make a real difference now in OKC, would come at a cost that General Manager Sam Presti could live with, short time and for the future.\u00a0 The giving side of the trade the Thunder would have to put on the table would benefit both the Clippers and the team on Reno Street<\/strong>.<\/h6>\n

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The most interesting trade between the\u00a0two\u00a0would give\u00a0OKC \u00a0Blake Griffin for Enes Kanter, Domantos Sabonis, and one other player, such as a freshly signed Dion Waiters or another Thunder player not named Steve Adams, Russell Westbrook or Victor Oladipo.\u00a0\u00a0 If Presti can get a starting line-up of Westbrook, Adams, Griffin, Oladipo and Andre Roberson, that would put the Thunder as good a starting five this side of the Sierra Nevada’s.\u00a0 And with a bench of young but good talent that will improve, \u00a0OKC is now back in business.<\/strong><\/h6>\n

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Two things need to come together.\u00a0 Presti has to prove to Westbrook that he will\u00a0surround the new face of the franchise will players\u00a0will make the Thunder win now, not in three or four years.\u00a0 If Presti cannot do that, give Westbrook a fighting chance to win now, look for\u00a0number\u00a00\u00a0to take his game to Cleveland next year.\u00a0 Cleveland, unlike other destinations that have been rumored as possible venue for Westbrook, such as the New York\u00a0Knicks, and the Los Angeles\u00a0Clippers or the Los Angeles Lakers on the left coast, do not benefit Westbrook in wining a title soon, or\u00a0in 2017-18.\u00a0 Only Cleveland, Golden State or San Antonio at the least, would offer that to the OKC star.\u00a0 And could you see Westbrook being reigned in by Coach Popovich?\u00a0 And for Golden State,\u00a0no for many reasons that do not need to be explained.<\/strong><\/h6>\n

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This is Presti’s time to shine. OKC is not far off. The loss of\u00a0Kevin Durant can be overcome.\u00a0\u00a0The\u00a0Thunder suffered so much last year with death, coaching loss, and now we find, loyalty.\u00a0\u00a0Issues with the former face of the franchise cannot be overstated. Internal strife, as small as some phone calls to the wrong person can devastate\u00a0a team.\u00a0 A cancer can rear its ugly head anywhere, even on the face.\u00a0\u00a0This cancer\u00a0has taken it’s departure without surgery, and with an opportunity to be well again, what\u00a0will \u00a0the Thunder do with a positive mental outlook for the now and present.\u00a0 With Griffin, a title run would not be out of the question.<\/strong><\/h6>\n
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Various trade rumors concerning the Oklahoma City Thunder are being talked about in the NBA…<\/p>\n

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