I'm still not sure I'm understanding how/why we were able to pull this off Major props to Rob, but what was OKC's motivation. If they are both expiring contracts, is that draft pick worth the difference in player quality? My first reaction is No Way!
But they do seem to have a plan in place that involves a complete rebuild. Pretty smart approach for a small market team on the rebound. Basically make the playoffs by getting CP3 desperate to prove his worth, get draft picks in all kinds of trades, and have the Boston C bag model for a rebuild in the future. Hopefully more successfully executed.
What I'm liking best about this exchange is that we are getting a young guy who can and wants to play heavy minutes. Lebron will definitely be load managed this year. Kuzma should stay because he'll get plenty of run as well. AD will probably be managed somewhat as well. Everyone else is pretty much young enough or was low minutes enough that it isn't as big of a concern. Great job Rob!
Their highest value assets are the Clippers picks. Helping us beat the Clippers another year increases the chance that one or both Clippers stars leaves in free agency next year and blowing up that team. OKC are playing 4d chess here.
Some stats from Anthony Slater's article with The Athletic https://theathletic.com/2198650/2020/11/15/dennis-schroder-lakers-trade-analysis/
i don't love pick hoarding, basically for the reason you suggest here. having a bazillion picks in a short window actually ends up being problematic. especially with all the protections picks have now. keep in mind that boston's deal that killed billy king was also the last one involving lots of unprotected picks--and they STILL didn't really capitalize in the way they hoped. okc's on course to have a lot of mid to late first round picks. those don't have a ton of value, and when you have several, teams know you need to move them. now, maybe they can flip them for later picks along the way to spread it out, but it's just not my favorite way to go about things.
CP2 calls him a dog. Usually associated with gritty defense. And that totally was my limited impression reading about him a couple years ago .... that he was a great defender. Have been so surprised to now read and see in clips everything he’s capable of doing on offense. Yet one paragraph above in The Athletic article says there will be times we have to “hide him on least threatening option” of other team?
my sense from both watching and reading about him was that he didn't seem too interested in defending. i don't think he's the highest IQ player, either, which hurts a bit. add in that he's fairly small, and you can have issues. but you know what this reminds me of? jason terry. as a young player, he played for the same bad franchise and developed some bad habits, but ended up resurrecting himself as a sixth man/part-time starter who switched between the 1 and the 2 and was passable enough on defense to win a ring and compete for others. think he moved to dallas at a similar age, too, right?
Am I thinking of someone else on OKC? Back court player was pretty sure, called really good on defense and then got hurt a couple years ago and missed most all of or a lot of the next season ..... Paula’s re-up season, so was another reason to laugh at his bromance with Russ and OKC not doing well? Edit ..... wait, it was Andre Roberson I’m thinking of.
Damn, so it looks like OKC is in tandem with the Lakers. OKC knows they have no shot within the next few years so they want the Lakers to destroy the Clippers so that George/Kawhi leave and then LAC are forced to tank. The picks OKC got from LAC are dependent on how LAC does for the season. If CP3's contract wasn't so expensive, they probably would have given him to the Lakers for peanuts.
OKC is just trying to get assets. They don't give a rats behind about the Lakers, Clippers or those two clowns.
I'm still digging this trade a lot, especially since all our guards who can have opted out. We upgraded from Green at least.
These NBA teams like OKC and Boston think they are in the NFL. Accumulating all these assets for what? One 1st overall pick in a draft for a can't miss player is worth 20 mid round 1st round picks. Cracks me up how clueless these GM's are.
Agree to a degree, but OKC is better at drafting than Boston and Philly combined (can't forgot The Process).
Read on Twitter OKC has 17 first round picks between now until 2027. I think they'll acquire some stars but also drain some teams of their flexibility in the process (HOU, OKC and LAC ponied up a lot of their future to win now)
