OKC proving Durant not needed to maintain success
When Dwight Howard was traded from Orlando after the 2011-12 season, the Magic went from a team with a run of six straight playoff appearances, including the Finals in 2009, to a team that has not sniffed the postseason again. The Cavaliers fell from a 61win team with LeBron James to a 19-victory shell of themselves without James (before his triumphant return). New Orleans has been to the playoffs once since Chris Paul’s departure in 2011.
Some observers predicted a similar fate for the Thunder after Kevin Durant left for the Warriors. Some, not all. Why would anyone think the Thunder could sidestep the fate of others and head toward the playoffs?
“Why not?” triple-double king Russell Westbrook said.
Westbrook is having a season forged on Olympus. The 28-yearold MVP candidate is averaging a triple-double (31.9 points, 10.5 rebounds, 10.1 assists), trying to equal Oscar Robertson (1961-62) as the second player ever to do so over a full season.
But Thunder coach Billy Donovan sees more than just Westbrook’s monster season behind a playoff bid minus Durant.
“When initially it happened, we understood Kevin earned the right to go through free agency and make his own choice,” said Donovan, who led the Thunder to a 122-104 victory over the Nets on Tuesday. “Once he made his decision, everybody from Russell to the organization was, ‘OK, let’s move forward. This is out of our control. What can we control?’ ”
The Thunder blew a threegames-to-one lead to the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals. Durant left. Westbrook was expected to follow. But no one in Oklahoma City took a “poor us” attitude, least of all Westbrook, who signed a three-year, $85.7 million contract extension.
“For me to be here through the ups and downs, through the battles and in the trenches and finding ways to always come out of it, is the greatest thing about being in Oklahoma City,” Westbrook said the day he re-upped.
“When I spoke to Russell in the summer, his whole thing was: ‘What are we doing next?’ ” Donovan said. “He set an incredible tone for our team. … Even in summertime, the guy has always been all-in on the team and doing what he can to help.”
The Thunder (37-29) have the NBA’s third-youngest lineup (24.8 years). While the Knicks and Nets, to name two, tried to hit rosterbuilding homers and now are paying the price, the Thunder took a steady approach. Their moves lacked mega-names like Garnett, Pierce or Rose. But acquiring or resigning guys such as Victor Oladipo, Steven Adams, Taj Gibson, Domantas Sabonis has yielded big dividends.
“Half our roster was new. We had a lot of younger guys,” Donovan said. “It was more about what we needed to do collectively as a group to get better. ”