Oklahoma City Thunder: What if OKC misses the playoffs?

After what many considered a great summer, the Oklahoma City Thunder are in real danger to miss the playoffs entirely

Last summer, many applauded the work that Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti did. And it was deserved.

Not only did the Oklahoma City Thunder come away with the biggest star on the trade block, but they came away with the two biggest stars on the trade block – excluding Jimmy Butler, who was moved quickly, and somewhat surprisingly, on NBA draft night.

Presti, one year after losing Kevin Durant to the Golden State Warriors, had created a new Big 3 in Oklahoma City.

More from Sir Charles In Charge

The initial thought was that the combination of Russell Westbrook, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony could – and, for most, would – be the biggest threat to the Warriors in the Western Conference.

That, however, hasn’t exactly happened.

In fact, it’s no certainty that the Thunder even make the playoffs this season.

With roughly 20 games remaining in the regular season, the Oklahoma City Thunder are 34-27 and sitting in the 7th seed in the Western Conference. Perhaps most concerning, OKC is tied with the 9th seeded LA Clippers in the loss column with 27 losses, and just two games ahead of the 10th-seeded Utah Jazz in the loss column.

Over their last 11 games, dating back to just before the NBA All-Star game, the Thunder are a shaky 4-7. Three of those wins came against the Sacramento Kings (twice) and the Memphis Grizzlies, two teams that are on course to have top 5 picks in this year’s NBA Draft. Not a great look.

Taking it a step further, during that 11-game stretch, the Thunder have the 21st best offense in the league and 18th best defense in the league. In other words, they’re a worse than average team over the last few weeks.

So, it’s definitely not a forgone conclusion that this team is going to make the playoffs this year. Question is, what happens if they don’t? How will it impact their potential free agent decisions on Paul George and/or Carmelo Anthony?

If this incarnation of the team doesn’t make the playoffs, would it really make much sense to attempt to bring it back? It’d be a difficult decision to make, and certainly not one that Presti would envy, especially considering that bringing this (potentially) non-playoff team would be extremely costly.

Must Read: 2018 NBA Mock Draft 2.0: Michael Porter Jr., DeAndre Ayton top the class

At the same time, not only would the Oklahoma City Thunder be in a bind, but so would Paul George. Would George agree to re-sign long-term with the team if they failed to make the playoffs? Heck, it’d be somewhat of step back from where he was with the Indiana Pacers the last few seasons.

As crazy as it sounds, a lot hinges on the next few weeks for the Oklahoma City Thunder. And making the playoffs, as innocent as it sounds, could be at the center of it all.

Home/Oklahoma City Thunder