Mussatto: OKC Thunder has Big Three that rivals Durant, Westbrook, Harden days
On April 18, 2022, Sam Presti held one of his epic end-of-season press conferences.
The Thunder had just finished 24-58 in Year 2 of its rebuild, but on the horizon, in two months’ time, was a draft that would propel the franchise’s future.
In that two-hour and 20,000-word Q&A session, Presti was asked if he felt any pressure to replicate the magic of the Thunder’s first rebuild. The one in which Presti drafted three future MVPs in consecutive years. Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden — a trio which made the NBA Finals at the ages of 23, 23 and 22.
“Skill is recognizing when you’ve been fortunate,” Presti said. “And I know we’ve been very fortunate … I don’t know how that happened. I think it was a lot of things that came together.”
Presti is the first to tell you how lucky the Thunder’s been, and of course that’s true. But as general manager, Presti parlayed that early luck into sustained success. The Thunder made four conference finals appearances in a six-year stretch from 2011-16.
“But the main thing is Kevin Durant is a basketball god, James Harden is a basketball genius and Russell Westbrook is a basketball warrior … I just feel very fortunate, but I know that wasn’t us,” Presti said in that 2022 press conference. We just have to keep applying the same principles and processes that allowed that to happen.
“But that’s probably never going to happen again.”
More: OKC Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren is chasing greatness and isn't afraid to fail on the way
It’s happening again.
As the Thunder’s Big Three competes at NBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, it’s another reminder of how the stars have aligned in Oklahoma City just as they did 15 years ago. It’s said that lightning never strikes the same place twice, but apparently that meteorological myth does not apply to thunder.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (traded for, not drafted), Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren might not all be destined for MVP awards a la Durant, Westbrook and Harden — although SGA is pacing toward one this season — but that’s not the point when comparing the original Thunder U to this 2.0 version.
The point is how inconceivable all of this is. That OKC once again has a collection of talent that rivals a trio of future hall of famers. And the fit among this current Big Three? Even better now than it was back then. An on-ball savant in SGA, a voracious wing in Williams and a prodigious big man in Holmgren — all of whom complement each other.
Durant and Westbrook were wildly successful, albeit in a your turn/my turn kind of way. And Harden, he was the Thunder’s sixth man before being infamously shipped to Houston.
The Thunder’s young core of SGA, Chet and J-Dub is the envy of the league, much like KD, Russ and Harden were more than a decade before them. The cast of characters has changed, but Presti, the architect behind both blueprints, remains.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. Not this fast. Not in this manner.
More: Ranking top NBA All-Star Game performances by OKC Thunder players
In December 2020, in the throes of the pandemic, I wrote a story headlined: Why OKC Thunder is unlikely to match speed of Seattle SuperSonics rebuild. It outlined the trades of Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, which cleared the path for Durant. I looked at the picks of Westbrook and Harden, and how the lottery odds have since been flattened.
I wrote that “landing even one player at the level of a Durant, Westbrook or Harden would be a win.”
It seemed logical then. No one, including Presti, thought that first SuperSonics/Thunder rebuild was a repeatable model to follow.
And yet … here we are.
Now, if all of this is sounding premature, I hear you. I’m not saying it’s time to plan the parade route.
This version of the Thunder has yet to win anything. It hasn’t played in a playoff series, much less won one.
But look at the big-picture parallels of the Thunder’s two rebuilds under Presti. They’re impossible to ignore.
More: OKC Thunder rookies learning NBA All-Star weekend is serious, silly
Thunder U vs. Thunder U 2.0
Year 1 then (2007-08), 20-62: Presti was named general manager in June 2007, weeks before the NBA Draft. The SuperSonics were projected to have the No. 5 pick, but they leapt to No. 2 on lottery night. Portland, of course, took Greg Oden. That left Seattle with Kevin Durant. Presti’s first bit of good fortune, but hey, he nailed the pick.
Kevin Durant, age 19: 80 games, 20.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.0 steal, 43% FG, 29% 3FG, 87% FT
Year 1 now (2020-21), 22-50: Mark Daigneault’s first year as coach and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s first season as The Guy, albeit in just 35 games played before being shut down with a plantar fascia tear. The Thunder lost 23 of its last 25 games, but the most devastating blow came on lottery night. The Thunder, which had a 25% chance at two top-five picks and a 75% chance of landing at least one top-five pick came away with none. The Thunder fell to the No. 6 slot, where it selected Josh Giddey — the franchise’s highest-drafted player since James Harden (No. 3) 11 years prior. With the 55th pick, the Thunder drafted Aaron Wiggins, a wing out of Maryland.
Gilgeous-Alexander, age 22: 35 games, 23.7 points, 5.9 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 0.8 steals, 51% FG, 42% 3FG, 81% FT
Year 2 then (2008-09), 23-59: Year 1 in Oklahoma City and Russell Westbrook’s rookie season. The Thunder started the season 3-29 before winning 20 of its next 50 games. Westbrook was thought to be a reach at No. 4 in the 2008 draft, but he turned out to be the best pick of Presti’s tenure. Westbrook was and remains an icon in OKC. And don’t forget about Serge Ibaka, a steal at No. 24.
Kevin Durant, age 20: 74 games, 25.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.3 steals, 48% FG, 42% 3FG, 86% FT
Russell Westbrook, age 20: 82 games, 15.3 points, 5.3 assists, 4.9 rebounds, 1.3 steals, 40% FG, 27% 3FG, 82% FT
Year 2 now (2021-22), 24-58: The Thunder’s lottery luck was much better this time around. OKC entered the draft with the No. 2 and 12 picks, which became Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams. The Thunder also moved into the No. 11 slot, where it drafted Ousmane Dieng. Jaylin Williams was the Thunder’s pick at No. 34.
Gilgeous-Alexander, age 23: 56 games, 24.5 points, 5.9 assists, 5.0 rebounds, 1.3 steals, 45% FG, 30% 3FG, 81% FT
Mussatto: OKC Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander isn't in 50-point club, but 'it'll come one day'
Year 3 then (2009-10), 50-32: The Thunder was awarded with the No. 3 pick after a 23-win season. After drafting back-to-back future MVPs in Durant and Westbrook, Presti completed the hat trick by selecting Harden. OKC made a massive 27-win improvement, and a competitive first-round loss to the No. 1 seed Lakers gave the young Thunder legitimacy. Durant, at 21, finished second for MVP.
Kevin Durant, age 21: 82 games, 30.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.4 steals, 48% FG, 37% 3FG, 90% FT
Russell Westbrook, age 21: 82 games, 16.1 points, 8.0 assists, 4.9 rebounds, 1.3 steals, 42% FG, 22% 3FG, 78% FT
James Harden, age 20: 76 games, 9.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.1 steals, 40% FG, 38% 3FG, 81% FT
Year 3 now (2022-23), 40-42: A gigantic 16-win jump from the previous season. Gilgeous-Alexander finished fifth in MVP voting, Jalen Williams finished second for Rookie of the Year and Daigneault was second for Coach of the Year. The Thunder won its first play-in game at New Orleans before losing at Minnesota and falling one game short of the playoffs.
Gilgeous-Alexander, age 24: 68 games, 31.4 points, 5.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds, 1.6 steals, 51% FG, 35% 3FG, 91% FT
Jalen Williams, age 21: 75 games, 14.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.4 steals, 52% FG, 36% 3FG, 81% FT
Year 4 then (2010-11), 55-27: The Thunder beat the Nuggets in the first round and the Grizzlies in the second round before losing to the Mavericks, the eventual champs, in the Western Conference Finals. OKC had arrived. The Thunder would make the NBA Finals the next season, losing to LeBron James and the Heat.
Kevin Durant, age 22: 78 games, 27.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.1 steals, 46% FG, 35% 3FG, 88% FT
Russell Westbrook, age 22: 82 games, 21.9 points, 8.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds, 1.9 steals, 44% FG, 33% 3FG, 84% FT
James Harden, age 21: 82 games, 12.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.1 steals, 44% FG, 35% 3FG, 84% FT
Year 4 now (2023-24), 37-17: Heck, another 55-win season might be in store. The Thunder is second in the West at the All-Star break and is a near lock to finish in the top-four. OKC will be playoff bound for the first time since the 2019-20 season. If history repeats, the Thunder will be Western Conference Finals bound this season with an NBA Finals appearance looming.
Gilgeous-Alexander, age 25: 53 games, 31.1 points, 6.5 assists, 5.5 rebounds, 2.2 steals, 55% FG, 37% 3FG, 88% FT
Jalen Williams, age 22: 48 games, 19.2 points, 4.6 assists, 4.1 rebounds, 1.0 steal, 54% FG, 45% 3FG, 81% FT
Chet Holmgren, age 21: 54 games, 16.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.6 blocks, 54% FG, 39% 3FG, 77% FT
NBA Rising Stars recap: Thunder's Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams win title with Team Jalen
My first takeaway is the age difference. This Thunder team is young, the third-youngest roster in the league entering the season. But the Durant, Westbrook, Harden teams? They were still babies at this point.
Williams and Holmgren are the same ages now as Westbrook and Harden were when the Thunder made the Western Conference Finals, but Gilgeous-Alexander is 25 compared to Durant, who was only 22 as the best player on one of the four best teams in the league.
This comparison also has the benefit of hindsight. Again, Harden was a sixth man with the Thunder before Houston unleashed him. Jeff Green, not Harden, was the third-best player on the 2010-11 team. And Ibaka was just as key, maybe even more so, to the Thunder’s success.
And prior to this year, maybe Josh Giddey would’ve been included in the Thunder’s core. Clearly, though, he’s been passed by J-Dub and Holmgren in the hierarchy.
This exercise also doesn’t account for role players. The Thunder is deeper now than it was then.
But in the NBA, nothing matters more than top-end talent.
The collection of talent OKC had in its early years seemed a once-in-a-generation phenomenon. Until now.
Thunder has struck twice.
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com. Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
More: As Shai Gilgeous-Alexander makes All-Star start, OKC Thunder guard staying 'very present'
NBA All-Star Game
TIPOFF: 7 p.m. Sunday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis (TNT)
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Thunder has second Big Three in SGA, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren
