OKC Thunder Blog – Page 18 – NBA Blog

Thunder sign Nerlens Noel

Nerlens Noel is still trying to establish himself in the NBA and live up to his potential. The The Oklahoma City Thunder are giving him a chance to do this, and signed the forward/center today.

According to the Oklahoman, “it’s a two-year deal — the second year is a player option — expected to be at the veteran minimum, which would pay Noel about $1.7 million next season. It’s a surprisingly low price for a 6-foot-11 former lottery pick who last season turned down a reported four-year, $70 million deal with the Mavericks, and that makes the appeal obvious.”

Noel (6-11, 220) has appeared in 223 career games (158 starts), averaging 9.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.56 steals and 1.41 blocks in 26.0 minutes per game while shooting 51.2 percent (847-1654) from the field with Philadelphia and Dallas. The Malden, Mass. native is one of two players in the league to average 1.5+ steals and 1.4+ blocks over the last four seasons (DeMarcus Cousins).

“We are excited to bring Nerlens to the Thunder,” said Presti. “In addition to being a multi-faceted defender‎, he moves the ball at a high level for a player at his position, which complements our existing core.”

The Kentucky product was originally selected sixth overall by New Orleans in the 2013 NBA Draft and was later named to the All-Rookie First Team.

In one year as a Wildcat, the 2013 SEC Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year started in all 24 games he appeared in and averaged 10.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 4.42 blocks and 2.08 steals in 31.9 minutes per contest. Noel led the conference in total blocks with 106 on the season en route to being named to the All-SEC First Team.

Hornets trade Hamidou Diallo draft rights to Thunder

The Charlotte Hornets today acquired a 2019 second-round draft pick and cash considerations from the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for the draft rights to Hamidou Diallo, the 45th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.

The Hornets acquired Diallo’s rights, along with center Timofey Mozgov, a 2021 second-round draft pick and cash considerations, from the Brooklyn Nets earlier today in exchange for Dwight Howard.

Diallo (6-5, 198), was originally selected by the Brooklyn Nets with the 45th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft. The Kentucky product started all 37 games as a redshirt freshman and averaged 10.0 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 24.8 minutes per game and scored in double figures in 16 games.

A native of Queens, N.Y., Diallo represented the U.S. in the 2017 FIBA U19 World Cup and 2016 FIBA Americas U18 Championship.

Sixers reportedly interested in Paul George

It’s about to be on. Free agent mania. Great players needing new homes, and perhaps going in that route, or sticking with their current squad. Endless speculation. As for Paul George, here’s the Philadelphia Inquirer reporting that the Sixers wouldn’t mind adding him alongside Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid and friends:

ESPN is reporting that Paul George told the Oklahoma City Thunder he will opt out his $20.7 million salary for the 2018-19 season. The small forward has until 11:59 p.m. Friday to formerly decline the final year of his contract.

The Sixers are interested in pursuing the five-time NBA all-star to play alongside Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid, according to sources.

His opting out doesn’t mean that George ruled out playing for the Thunder. He’s considering a return to Oklahoma City as a free agent, according to reports. He would be eligible to make more money under that scenario.

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Paul George will reportedly opt out of Thunder contract

The Thunder weren’t an impressive team last season. Carmelo Anthony will stick around, because other teams wouldn’t offer the type of money he’ll make from OKC in 2018-19. But Paul George has options. And remember, just because George will reportedly opt out of his Thunder deal doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll leave the team. He could re-sign, for a huge new contract. Or take his talent elsewhere. Here’s ESPN.com reporting:

Oklahoma City Thunder star Paul George has informed franchise officials that he will not be opting in for the final year of his contract and will become an unrestricted free agent, league sources told ESPN.

George has an 11:59 p.m. ET Friday deadline to formally decline to opt in.

George, who will decline a $20.7 million salary for the 2018-19 season, remains seriously interested in returning to the Thunder in free agency, league sources said. The Los Angeles Lakers will receive serious consideration too, sources said.

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Kevin Durant discusses why he left the Thunder

Here’s an opinionated take from an Oklahoman column on Kevin Durant’s latest discussion as to why he chose to leave the Thunder to join the Warriors:

Kevin Durant seems to have a different take every 15 minutes on why he left the Thunder for the Warriors. You know the list. It’s long.

But here’s a new one. In a long story published in The Athletic over the weekend, Durant used “validation from my peers” as his reason for crushing parity in the NBA. Durant’s addition to an already-loaded roster lifted Golden State above all competitors while also eliminating OKC as a viable threat to the Warriors.

“Validation” from his peers is a laughable concept, of course. Durant drew all kinds of criticism from the NBA’s elite for his weak move. It’s hard to imagine any NBA player thinking more highly of Durant in the last two years than they did before his move West.

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Will Thunder keep Corey Brewer?

The Thunder face major decisions this summer. Their roster could shake up pretty dramatically, depending on what happens with Carmelo Anthony and Paul George. Looking beyond those players, here’s the Oklahoman with a glance at all that is Corey Brewer:

A breakneck pace on offense. Dribbling that tenses up the muscles. Corner 3-pointers galore. Welcome to the Corey Brewer Experience.

Was the acquisition of Brewer worth it for the Thunder, and worth enough to bring back the veteran swingman for another season?

“I think the pickup of Corey late gave us some added length and size on the wing, and he did a really good job for us,” Thunder coach Billy Donovan said.

When the Thunder acquired Brewer on March 3, it was searching for a replacement for Andre Roberson. In the 12 days following Roberson’s season-ending knee injury on Jan. 27, Thunder general manager Sam Presti and the front office didn’t make a deal before the trade deadline. For many contending teams, the price of business at the deadline was too much. First-round picks were hoarded like water in a drought, only three changing hands in a three-month span from early November to the Feb. 8 deadline.

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Paul George undergoes medical procedures

Thunder forward Paul George, whose time with the team could end this offseason, went through more than one medical procedure recently. Here’s the Norman Transcript reporting:

In addition to the left knee scope Paul George underwent this week, the Thunder star also had some work done on his arm.

George had been dealing with bursitis in his right elbow. Doctors drained the bursa sac to treat it, the team told The Transcript.

George spent part of this past season referring to what he called “tightness” in his right forearm. He began making the complaints in December and spoke about the tightness most recently before the Thunder played in Miami during the second-to-last game of the regular season. He said at that time doctors had “not necessarily” given him a more specific diagnosis.

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Paul George undergoes knee surgery

OKC Thunder forward Paul George underwent a left knee scope today, the team says.

George will likely be out of action six to eight weeks before returning to normal offseason activities.

In 79 games (all starts) this past NBA season, George had averages of 21.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.04 steals in 36.6 minutes per game. A five-time NBA All-Star, George hit a career-best 244 three-point field goals during the 2017-18 season, and became one of just five players (Larry Bird, Hersey Hawkins, Michael Jordan and Stephen Curry the others) in the past 30 years to average 20+ points on better than 40.0 percent three-point shooting to go along with 2+ steals.

Alex Abrines undergoes surgery

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Abrines has undergone surgery to fix a sports hernia. The procedure was performed by Dr. William Meyers of the Vincera Institute in Philadelphia, Pa.

In the 2017-18 NBA season, Abrines played in 75 games (eight starts) for the Thunder, averaging 4.7 points per outing while shooting .380 percent from three-point range (84-221 3FGs) to go along with 1.5 rebounds in 15.1 minutes.

Abrines will likely miss around six weeks before he returns to regular offseason activities.

Thunder will keep coach Billy Donovan

The Thunder have a huge upcoming summer. Both Paul George and Carmelo Anthony could stay or go. The team also needs to decide what’s best, and who makes a proper fit around Russell Westbrook. One thing they have already decided is, they do have the right coach for the job. Here’s the Oklahoman reporting:

Billy Donovan, who is 150-96 in three seasons as the Thunder’s head coach, will return for a fourth, Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti said Wednesday at his postseason news conference.

Presti’s hope is that Donovan, who’s faced significant roster turnover in his first two offseasons with OKC, will “be able to work with the same core of a team that has a baseline that we’ve established.”

In his hourlong meeting with the media, Presti said the organization is “disappointed” with the 2017-18 season, which ended with loss in six games to the Utah Jazz in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

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