What The Oklahoma City Thunder Should Do?

you said too many young players is bad but you want them to trade for griffin?

mullens
griffin
durant
harden
westbrook

thats ridiculous. would never happen

I don’t think the Clippers would do that trade. Thunder are not getting Griffin. I think chemistry wise Jeff Green is a great fit for the Thunder but skill wise probably not because I see him as more of a SF. That is a tough decision on wether to trade him or not. It just depends what kind of trade value he has. Personally I think BJ Mullens will be a bust for sure. So basically OKC needs a true PF & a big Center for the future. That is why they probably should hang on too both of their 1st round picks. They may be able to fill both those needs if they draft wisely in 2010.

To me, I’m not scared of Green being their PF of the future…I don’t think he’s really ready to compete with bigger PFs right now, but the Thunder’s team isn’t built for right now anyway. I think that given another year or two in the weight room, he’ll be ready to hold his own down low. And, if the thunder does end up drafting a more conventional PF in next year’s draft, they could bring Green off the bench~ a la LO last year for the Lakers and he could come in at the 3 or 4…

I also agree, Mullens is not the long-term answer at C, but if he can add some grit to his game, he could provide a big body down low maybe a little like Joel Pryzbilla?

i think they should make a different move like maybe get Gortat. they might not have to give much (definetly not Green) and xbadgerhustler i agree they need that king of player and he is that kind of player. i think theit scoring is with Harden, Westbrook, Durant, and Green, and he wont take shots from them hell just play good D and he could be what Pryzbilla is to Portland right now.

The first step is he needs to get tougher… He looked soft in the minutes he played last year at Ohio St. Pryzbilla has a beast of a personality… maybe Mullens should go to boot camp or something?

Reminds of a player like Lamar Odom. I know he does not have lots of the physical gifts Odom has but Green should try to copy Odoms game in the sense of Odom can score, Rebound, Defend, and Pass. If Green developed into a player like that I would think he could be there corner stone on the Bench. Not saying he should play bench but once Oklahome comes a serious contender I would like him to get better at pf and rebounding and passing

he’s definitely versatile and unselfish like LO… he wants to get his teammates involved rather than score himself, which is why I’ve always said he was a great wingman for Durant- possibly the most pure scorer in the game

It would be a good PR and talent move for OKC if they could get hometown kid in Griffin. But they would still be too young. If they make a considerable improvement this year (which they should) and they feel they are a player or 2 away from being a playoff contender then they should trade their first rounder and Green for a veteran star rather then add another high draft pick rookie. They definitely need an upgrade at PF and C. I like Green as a 6th man who can play the 3 and 4 but not start at 4. BJ got a long way to go before being any type of factor.

On a side not Baron Davis being a heir apparent to any point guard in the NBA (maybe besides Kidd) is a funny thought. He’s no that old, but he is always hurt and has a big contract. He kind of reminds me of Terrell Brandon. All star game with leadership qualities but never on the court enough to be counted on.

When Mullens was labeled the #1 high school player ( in some publications) I was expecting a great post player that was going to tear up the big ten like Greg Oden did. He didn’t. Look at the big men from Ohio State. Oden, Kufos and Mullens. I don’t have faith in any of them becoming a factor in the NBA. (unless Oden gets over his injuries) As far as Green, I wasn’t impressed with his Georgetown career either and wasn’t sure if Seatle was making the right choice picking him. But having Durant, Westbrook and now Harden taking most of the shots, they need a PF willing to do the dirty job of crashing the paint and grabbing rebounds. Knowing that whoever that PF and C will be, will get most of their points by rebounding and putting it back up.

i think the exact same thing in reguards to green and odom..as far as don…mullans is NOT a corner stone at center..right now hes a back up for a couple years and the clippers wouldnt be dumb enough to make that trade. green does alot more then just hustle and crash the boards he scores and passes..not sure what jeff green some of ya’ll have been watching

Definitely agree about the rebounding need… Green needs to be grabbing like 8-10 boards/gm. 6.7 won’t cut it… That said, didn’t he start the season out at the 3, and then move to the 4 mid-way through the year?

Also, he’s a good passer and needs to average more than 2 apg~ otherwise he’s not really all that valuable. 39% 3FG is good though.

Westbrook is probably their PG for the future, Harden their SG for the future, Durant their SF for the future. Green can be the sixth man for the future, Mullens their reserve C, they need a good PF, depending on how they play next year it may be a free agent or a player from the draft, they could draft 2 big men draft (Alabi & Adrich or Ed Davis) and wait another year until they develop or hire a free agent (e.g. Stoudamire) and become play off contenders straight away.

your a$$ dumb as sh!t u make no sense

3rd seed in the playoffs somehow is not “working out” for don

Not even the Clips are that dumb.

So they should continue to build for the future – Green is a glue guy – who can be like Lamar – his 3 point shooting is drastically improved. Trading next years pick for a good vet to add to the puzzle would be wise, but the key to the new NBA in this economy is the patience that Presti is showing.

That being said like Anton broke down – Green as the 6th man and adding someone like Boozer or Amare would be the ticket

They could try to make a deal for Gortat…Collison + the Wolves 2nd rounder could do the trick…it would give them an upgrade at the PF, assuming Lewis players SF and Bass is at PF, and let them draft someone probably no later then the 35th pick…probably an upperclassmen who can add to a bench that’s a little shallow.

If they can’t swing a deal for him they need to get their hands on a legit C before they trade to upgrade Green at the 4. I love Green, his size may be an issue, and him having that LO role could end up being ideal for him. If I was Presti I would try to swing a draft day deal for Aldrich(if they win enough games to not to land a top 5 draft pick). He’s a solid rebounder and defender that would probably be able to contribute right away. OKC was I think 6th or 7th in rebounding differential last year, so imagine if they got their hands on a C who can actually hit the glass, unlike Krstic. If they were able to hang onto their second first round pick I think someone like Cousins would be an interesting chioce, but I don’t know if that’s something they would do. Right now they have Ibaka, Mullens and DJ White, all 4/5s who are developing but I’m not sure if Presti would throw another big into that mix, especially with very little backcourt depth (Thabo will be an RFA and Livingston an URFA after this year). I could see them dealing their second pick for someone with a little more experience who can play the 1/2, if they think they will not be able to resign Thabo and Livingston.

I don’t think it’s realistic to sign someone like Amare, for a couple reasons. One, I think a franchise player dosn’t want to come to a rebuilding team and play second fiddle to Durant. Also it would be a poor financial decision for OKC, considering in a few years Westbrook, Durant, Harden and Green will all come off their rookie contracts and will be due for major pay raises. OKC isn’t a large enough market to dip deep into the luxury tax, and I would rather keep those 4 players together and let them develop, then bring in an aging player.

The Thunder have two first round picks, and I partly agree they got too many young guys (avg age: 23), what if they trade a first round draft pick + Collison and White for Biedrins, this leaves them with a first round pick and an all star caliber Centre

PG Westbrook (Livingston)
SG Harden (Weaver)
SF Durant (Green)
PF Kristic (Ed Davis or Cole Adrich)
C Biedrins (Mullens)

Just dreaming, but thats a playoff team

I can’t see GS trading Biedrens. He’s locked in for a several more years at pretty cheap, and he’s really young and fits Nelson’s system well.

Golden State is not trading Biedrins for a pile of poop & Orland is not trading Gortat for a bunch of garbage. Those trades are bogus & will never happen.

i never said they would give Orlando garbage.

I was talking to fastdan & Anton123…the trade scenarios they came up with were not fair. Gortat & Biedrins are a lot better than you guys think.

i was thinking more Collison and a second rounder.

why continue to make some many deals that 9 times outta 10 wont happen?

don youre not making much sense..of course they are young now. youre logic makes sense if they are trying to win now but since they have a team of young players they can be patient and let them developall they need is to keep the young team and mature just liek portland did. they arent suppossed to win now or the year after next. you have to be patient and let the young players get better not rush. they have a good core that they should stay with and develop and sign a center or big pf for back up..with time they can do very well with kristic,green,durant,harden, and westbrook

Living in OKC I hear a lot of the Thunder’s plans. Sam is not really looking for a superstar now and is saving for Russ, Jeff, and KD’s contracts to expire and sign them back. He’s brought in nice vets like Kevin Ollie to mentor Russ and Shaun becase they both have turnover problems and Kevin does not have that issue. Russ is the future PG for the Thunder, his 3pt shooting improved over the season and he has worked on it this summer and he is passing better, but if he developes his passing and decison making, he will be an all-star. Jeff is a LO type player like everybody else said, that the Thunder needs. James is going to be great for this team. KD is KD. However, I don’t trust BJ Mullins at all. If they get a top 5 pick, they should wrap up cash considerations, the best 2 2nd round pick they have+ Nick Collison (cuz in todays news paper, it sonded like he did not want to be here) and Shaun Livingston(cuz Kyle Weaver plays PG better than Shaun and I do not think Shaun will improve anymore) for a vet at C (then draft Derrick Favors) or a top 5 pick and get Alibi (if they have a top pick) and trade their next lottery pick for a 1st round pick next year. Then get the smartest/ highest BBall IQ player on the board with their Suns’ pick.

kyle weaver plays pg better then shaun?…kyle weaver looked lost out there anytime he played the pg position during the season and summer leauge..even a rehabilitating livingston looked wayyyyyy more better as a back up pg then weaver