5. Sign A Defensive Center
The playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs showed us many things about the Oklahoma City Thunder. The one surprise that it threw up to us was that Enes Kanter did not have to be hidden on defense. That is, as long as he was with Steven Adams.
Oklahoma City had Nazr Mohammed at the end of the season but he is 38 and not the defensive presence that he once was. I am also not suggesting getting Kendrick Perkins back into the team either. He was not good enough to play much for the New Orleans Pelicans, who were not a good team this year.
Oklahoma City could be a place for Joakim Noah currently of the Chicago Bulls to come back to relevance. He only played 29 games last year and when he was healthy he came off the bench, despite being only a couple of seasons removed from being named Defensive Player of the Year.
I would also love to see Iam Mahinmi, currently of the Indiana Pacers, come off the bench for Oklahoma City. Not only would he be a defensive anchor but his almost two offensive rebounds per game would certainly complement Kanter’s work.
Other centers who would boost Oklahoma City’s chances of making it to the Finals are Tyler Zeller, Zaza Pachulia, Timofey Mozgov and Roy Hibbert.
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One thing is for certain, a healthy Oklahoma City Thunder with Kevin Durant is a team that no one can take lightly.