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There is no denying that the very core of the Thunder has been shaken with the death of Aubry McClendon. http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/14886100/oklahoma-city-thunder-part-owner-aubrey-mcclendon-dies-car-crash-indictment

When the market collapsed Aubrey lost a boatload and it looks like shady deals were par for the course. Looking at why he was indicted.

Shortly after the collapse there was talk about the ownership looking for another partial owner of the Thunder. But there just aren't that many millionaires in OKC or at least the kind of millionaires that have enough millions to own an NBA team.

So now what?

Obviously those are some major shoes to fill. The majority owner tends to have large feet.

Durant is a free agent. This whole franchise is in complete disarray right now. Maybe the coach and the players are on the same page but the foundation of this franchise has been rocked to the core with McClendon's death. Durant, Westbrook and Donovan might be the now but McClendon is the life blood. OKC's culture is changing.

Soooooooo.........

What does Durant do considering the big picture here? There is a lot more than simply NBA contract dollars here. Bigger markets, new ownership, but there is no denying the genius of San Presti. He takes a back seat to no one when it comes to GM's.

Plus you have the salary cap jump too. Seems like it would be in Durant's best interest to sign a one year deal then cash in when the cap bumps way up for max deals.

Some many questions, who's got answers?

I honestly think this changes nothing. The biggest guys with the deepest pockets are still on the board, and whatever happens to the shares likely won't affect KD.

The whole franchise is in disarray? Not really, nobody really cares who signs the checks.

This really doesn't effect anything.

That said, good to see you man, haven't seen you in a while.

I think KD leaves more because of Presti's incompetency in putting the pieces together in free agency. The guy is a drafting savant but his signings are trash can bottom 15th half of the league.

The Perkins contract
Letting Harden walk
Signings Kanter to such a big contract
Signings Dion Waiters
Holding on to Scooter Brooks for way too many seasons

Simply take all the money spent on Morrow, Singler and Waiters and just sign ONE competent 3 and D piece instead of having that money split up over 3 cans who are all incompetent in one area. You need an off ball defensive player to compliment KD and Westbricks style..

They have a complete glut of bigs and haven't had a real SG in years. They have continually gotten worse through free agency..

Northern Lights wrote:I think KD leaves more because of Presti's incompetency in putting the pieces together in free agency. The guy is a drafting savant but his signings are trash can bottom 15th half of the league.

The Perkins contract
Letting Harden walk
Signings Kanter to such a big contract
Signings Dion Waiters
Holding on to Scooter Brooks for way too many seasons

Simply take all the money spent on Morrow, Singler and Waiters and just sign ONE competent 3 and D piece instead of having that money split up over 3 cans who are all incompetent in one area. You need an off ball defensive player to compliment KD and Westbricks style..

They have a complete glut of bigs and haven't had a real SG in years. They have continually gotten worse through free agency..

Welcome to the board! But...
He didn't sign Kanter or Waiters to any contracts, he matched Kanter and Waiters was never signed. Brooks was a fine coach honestly, and the first 2 were both understood (Harden didn't want in OKC, Perk was a solid player at the time).

And he couldn't have taken that money and used it "combined" as you said. They were over the cap, the only way was to trade and resign using bird rights.

I wasn't a fan of the Brooks offense, and if I remember correctly I remember him playing Perk against the cHeat in the Finals and being out coached. He wasn't the best but I don't think he was a championship caliber coach and I don't know if they would have won with him even if they kept Harden. It's so disheartening right now the way our roster is built, I feel like we are a high quality (because of the west) treadmill team. With KD and Rus you will always win 50 and have a chance to make a good run, but with our signings I feel like our chances have gotten quite a bit smaller.

I don't mean to be so negative but it's sad to watch your favorite team decline while having two top 5 players in their primes.

Northern Lights wrote:I wasn't a fan of the Brooks offense, and if I remember correctly I remember him playing Perk against the cHeat in the Finals and being out coached. He wasn't the best but I don't think he was a championship caliber coach and I don't know if they would have won with him even if they kept Harden. It's so disheartening right now the way our roster is built, I feel like we are a high quality (because of the west) treadmill team. With KD and Rus you will always win 50 and have a chance to make a good run, but with our signings I feel like our chances have gotten quite a bit smaller.

I don't mean to be so negative but it's sad to watch your favorite team decline while having two top 5 players in their primes.

They're really an off season move from being on par with the top two. And catch a break and they're there already. They're pretty clearly third best and trade Kanter for a wing and you're there. This isn't a bad spot at all, its quite good. They're younger than Gsw or the Spurs and can improve. There's no real reason for pessimism.

The Warriors are very interested in Durant. I think he wants to win a championship at this point, and there's no better place to do it than with the Dubs. We could only do it through a sign and trade, which might land you Barnes + a solid bench player + draft choice. I am sure the Warriors management will put the heat on after the playoffs. Durant is unlikely to want to go to the Lakers, who are in a rebuilding mode.

zodiac816 wrote:The Warriors are very interested in Durant. I think he wants to win a championship at this point, and there's no better place to do it than with the Dubs. We could only do it through a sign and trade, which might land you Barnes + a solid bench player + draft choice. I am sure the Warriors management will put the heat on after the playoffs. Durant is unlikely to want to go to the Lakers, who are in a rebuilding mode.

lol no.

And if he goes to GS I'll eat my socks. The whole idea he has any desire to go there is far fetched and bizarre. You guys keep Barnes on that max, OKC will keep KD.

bondom34 wrote:

zodiac816 wrote:The Warriors are very interested in Durant. I think he wants to win a championship at this point, and there's no better place to do it than with the Dubs. We could only do it through a sign and trade, which might land you Barnes + a solid bench player + draft choice. I am sure the Warriors management will put the heat on after the playoffs. Durant is unlikely to want to go to the Lakers, who are in a rebuilding mode.

lol no.

And if he goes to GS I'll eat my socks. The whole idea he has any desire to go there is far fetched and bizarre. You guys keep Barnes on that max, OKC will keep KD.

If he really wants to leave I'll take Klay. Otherwise I'd prefer to just let him walk and have the cap space.