Would this trade make sense for the Oklahoma City Thunder?
What a fun story this would be for Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder. An all-time great heading home for what will likely be the last few years of his career. But the NBA isn’t about great storylines. It’s about trying to win a title.
Right now, the Thunder are in the rebuilding stage so that they can one day compete for a championship. Adding Westbrook to the mix doesn’t make sense, as all it would do is take away minutes from younger players. That’s why the picks are important.
The only way the Thunder would ever even consider this deal is if they get a ton of picks in return. And that’s what the Los Angeles Lakers would be offering here. Two protected first-round picks and two second-round picks is a decent haul for one-and-a-half years of Westbrook.
Unfortunately, OKC probably wouldn’t want to play Westbrook. They want to develop players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Tre Mann, and Josh Giddy. Westbrook would just be a mentor for those guys and wouldn’t get many minutes, if he got any at all.
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This trade is extremely unlikely to happen, although it would be very entertaining. The Thunder are always looking to add more draft capital to their collection, and that’s what it would take for the Lakers to dump Westbrook’s contract.
