Newest Thunder
The Thunder struck a deal to bring the Bulls’ Taj Gibson and Doug McDermott to OKC.
T he Thunder got better Thursday.
Not way better. Not championship better. Not Golden State better. But better. And in the Thunder’s new reality, that’s a really good day at the office.
Sam Presti turned Chicago’s bewildering attraction of Cameron Payne into rock-solid power forward Taj Gibson and sharpshooter Doug McDermott, giving
up Payne, Joffrey Lauvergne and Anthony Morrow.
“I think we’re a better team this evening than we were this morning, because we were able to add some things that would help our team,” Presti said Thursday night.
“Adding the shooting to space the floor, giving yourself another frontcourt player and pick-and-roll defender, getting those two guys make us a better basketball team.”
A team that needs shooting got the best shooter in the deal, McDermott, and the best player in the deal, Gibson, the latter by a long shot.
Neither is the 3-and-D player the Thunder actually covets — Gibson lacks the 3-point shooting; McDermott lacks the defense — but you take what you can get.
And the Thunder got a lot, considering what it had to trade. Thursday morning in my online chat, an insightful reader asked me if I thought the Thunder could get Gibson and McDermott from Chicago. I said no, because that’s a nice haul and it might cost Enes Kanter. Three hours later, the Thunder got both for a price nowhere near Kanter.
It wasn’t the Presti pilfering of Orlando in the Serge Ibaka trade, but when you can get Gibson and McDermott without giving up one of your eight best players, you can sleep soundly, knowing that Russell Westbrook has to be impressed with the exchange.
The trade can be viewed as two separate deals:
•The Thunder traded the expiring contracts of Lauvergne and Morrow for the expiring contract of Gibson. Huge advantage to OKC, since Gibson is an all-around player who can help down the stretch of this season and would be much more attractive to retain in free agency.
• The Thunder traded Payne, the 14th pick in the 2015 draft, for McDermott, the 11th pick in the 2014 draft. Payne is a little younger and contractually obligated for one more year than is McDermott, but McDermott possesses a skill, 3-point shooting, that is more valuable to this Thunder team than Payne’s chief asset, playmaking, and McDermott has shown much more of that skill than Payne has shown of his.
Gibson helps the Thunder a lot now and maybe for the future, too. Excellent defense, decent offense, consummate professional. A big upgrade over rookie Domantas Sabonis for the stretch drive and any playoff series.
If Billy Donovan chooses to start Gibson — and he should — the Thunder starting five becomes an alligator swamp of a defense. Hard to get past a unit of Steven Adams, Andre Roberson, Victor Oladipo, Westbrook and Gibson.
One of the hidden curses of Kevin Durant’s exodus was the defensive flexibility that went the way of the wind.
No Durant, no Ibaka. The Thunder lost two large, long, agile defenders who could block shots and guard on the perimeter. But since Halloween, Presti has replenished that void with Gibson and Jerami Grant.
Again, fix what you can fix.
Gibson becomes a free agent this summer, but this trade gives OKC a chance to re-sign him. The Thunder’s payroll is going to be over the salary cap, so major freeagent signings can’t happen without major roster upheaval.
But the Thunder can sign its own free agents without regard to the cap.
“I haven’t even shook his hand yet,” Presti said. “We always try to keep free agents we think are valuable.”
Plus, if Gibson stays, that’s Adams, Gibson, Kanter, Sabonis and Grant to man the paint. That makes Kanter somewhat expendable, giving Presti some draft-time ammunition for another trade.
McDermott isn’t shooting as well this season as he did a year ago — from .425 to .376 — but the Bulls have used Rajon Rondo, Michael Carter-Williams and Jerian Grant at point guard this season. Defenders have had no reason to leave McDermott.
That will change when Dougie McBuckets starts sharing the court with Westbrook.
So the Thunder is better. Can’t ask for much more.
BERRY TRAMEL: BERRY CAN BE REACHED AT (405) 760-8080 OR AT BTRAMEL@OKLAHOMAN.COM. HE CAN BE HEARD MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY FROM
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