Oklahoma City Thunder – Shooters and bench
For the past three years, the Oklahoma City Thunder have done really well in the regular season only to lose in the first round of the playoffs. This is quite a shock with a team led by the dynamic duo of Russell Westbrook and Paul George. When everything clicks, the Thunder are one of the best teams in the west they just have very very obvious weak spots they absolutely need to address and work on.
For instance, the Thunder were the worst 3-point shooting team in the league last season with the only real capable arm outside the arc being PG13. The Thunder, due to their large contracts given to many of their starters, also lack a decent amount of depth. Trading for Dennis Schroder last summer did help the cause, but it wasn’t enough. The Thunder need to acquire good shooters or else they’ll never be able to make it deep in the postseason.
All of OKC’s opponents will only guard the paint as that is where the majority of the Thunder’s points come from. One can argue that Steven Adams and Andre Roberson are getting paid too much money for the amount they bring to the team, thus suffocating the potential room they’d have to go out and sign a guy at the wing with a decent shot. OKC is also the farthest over the luxury tax in the league with essentially zero cap room.
Trading to free up space might be vital for the team as they didn’t draft any players known for their 3-ball on the 20th. What Oklahoma City desperately needs is a bench player with a great shot percentage. If they’re able to vary where their points come from, this team can evolve into something greater, potentially championship bounding. It’s up to the front office to make the next three years they have Paul George worth it.