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Paul George and Russell Westbrook: Defense into instant offense

By Albert Dadson

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 15: Paul George #13 of the Indiana Pacers dribbles the ball during the game against the Charlotte Hornets at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 15, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 15: Paul George #13 of the Indiana Pacers dribbles the ball during the game against the Charlotte Hornets at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 15, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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With Paul George being traded from the Pacers to the Thunder they now have the offense that they desperately needed to replace Kevin Durant. Now it all comes down to how these two superstars will play with each other.

Paul George was traded from the Indiana Pacers to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday for Domantas Sabonis and Victor Oladipo. The Thunder now have a replacement for Kevin Durant and a new running mate for Russell Westbrook.

This comes after Westbrook won the MVP award on Monday. Westbrook, now an official MVP, used to share the spotlight with Kevin Durant and will have to do that with Paul George. Westbrook led the team in points, rebounds and assists per game, but that was only good enough for one win the first round of the playoffs. Now George comes to the team and the Thunder are looking to have a more relevant season as a team.

After giving up just a starter in Oladipo and a bench player in Sabonis to get George, the Thunder will be able to have a tall starting lineup with Russell Westbrook at 6’3″, Andre Roberson at 6’7″ (if they re-sign him), Paul George at 6’9″, Taj Gibson at 6’9″ (if they re-sign him) and Steven Adams being 7’0″.

Also, with a shooter like Alex Abrines backing up Roberson, that could be perfect to balance the bench and starting lineup with defense and scoring when you have scoring threats like Westbrook and George in the starting lineup and Roberson locking up the opponent’s best player.

Taj Gison and Andre Roberson are both free agents, so it will be hard for this starting lineup to come to reality when the Thunder are limited with cap space.

Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City Thunder /

Oklahoma City Thunder

Also, this Westbrook and George duo may only be for one season, because George has one year left on his contract before being able to opt out, and he has a reported interest in signing with the Los Angeles Lakers after next season in 2018.

For this season though, the Thunder will be a threat on both sides of the ball.

The team’s potential height will be the reason why. With their length they will be able to get into passing lanes and cause havoc for other teams. If Roberson re-signs and is able to do what he did last year, then he will be what the Thunder need on the defensive end.

In terms of steals, the Thunder will be loaded in this category when the season starts. From the 1 through the 3 they will have at least one steal per game from each of those positions. Paul George averages 1.7 steals for his career all with the Pacers. Westbrook has 1,153 steals for his career and also averages 1.7 steals per game for his career, while Roberson averages 0.9 steals per game for his career.

To put these stats in perspective for you, Allen Iverson is 12th all-time in most steals in an NBA career with 1,983 and averaged 2.2 steals a game for his career. George and Westbrook are close to averaging two steals a game with their 1.7 averages.

With this potential to rack up points off turnovers the Thunder will have to make an assertive effort on defensive to control the pace of the game and to run teams out of the gym.

Westbrook has proved to be a facilitator and a supreme offensive force in the open floor and George has been known to get busy in the fastbreak aspect of the game.

If they can bring a fast, exciting pace to OKC, they will most likely find themselves in the playoffs again next year and this time in better position.

Next: NBA Trade Grades - Thunder scoop Paul George from Pacers

If the Thunder can retain Gibson and Roberson and if they can keep George for more than this season, the length and talent that the Thunder have will be able to overwhelm teams on  both sides of the floor.

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