The February trade deadline is just over a month away, so teams around the league are positioning themselves to shed albatross contracts, collective future assets, and/or position themselves for a post-season run. It’s a time of great existential anxiety for teams on the cusp that face the dilemma of whether to stand pat or make a bold move that might pay off or come back to bite them.
The Oklahoma City Thunder, for instance, are a team that has been riding the hairy edge all season long. Paul George will enter free agency next season, and he’s been vocal in the past about his dream to eventually play for his hometown Lakers. He’s softened his stance on the subject recently, however, saying that it’d be foolish of him to leave a good situation in OKC if believes the team is on the up and up.
That’s a big if, of course, given the team’s early season struggles, combined with the prospect of potentially losing George for nothing next summer. Some have posited that the Thunder should cut their losses and try to trade George before the deadline if they haven’t seen significant improvement, but the organization is reportedly planning on keeping him for the rest of the season and hedging their bets that a successful postseason will convince him to make a long-term commitment.
Via Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:
For now, the Thunder are fully committed to playing out the season with impending free agent Paul George. They still have hope that a strong run in the playoffs could convince him to re-sign in Oklahoma City. Nevertheless, the Lakers were the team to beat when the Thunder made the trade, and that probably hasn’t changed — although Oklahoma City has made a favorable impression on George and ultimately hopes to turn George with a deep playoff run. George has remained open-minded on a Thunder future, but there’s a long way to go.
Despite Russell Westbrook’s intrepid claim an NBA title is all the sales pitch they’ll need next summer, George has prudently tried to temper the expectations as bit, clarifying that it’s not a “championship or bust” scenario for the Thunder.
OKC can only infer what that means, but it’s a relatively safe assumption that the Thunder will likely need a strong showing at the very least that includes a solid win over one of the West’s elite teams — the Rockets, the Spurs, etc. — that proves they’ve got the pluck to be a legitimate title contender.
Even then, the Thunder and their fans will have to find a way to cope with the lingering uncertainty until free agency next July. It’s an unenviable position, but everyone knew that going into the George trade, with the tacit understanding that the potential rewards would vastly outweigh the risks involved.
(ESPN)
