OKC Thunder: How Paul George trade will affect team

The OKC Thunder have traded Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers so he can team up with Kawhi Leonard. Here’s how the team is affected by this trade.

The OKC Thunder had a problem going into the offseason. There were again going to pay a high luxury tax bill. So the OKC Thunder put Steven Adams, Andre Roberson and Dennis Schroder on the trading block.

It was thought that the team would have to part ways with one of these players and it was going to be a sad day for the team because these players really could have helped the team.

It looks like things will be eased a little bit as the team has just traded the MVP candidate player Paul George to the Los Angeles Clippers for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Danilo Gallinari, four unprotected first-round picks, a protected first-round pick and two pick swaps.

The Thunder were able to draw George away from the bright lights of L.A. for two straight years, but it looks like life in Los Angeles was too great for him to pass up.

Paul George requested the trade after talking to Kawhi Leonard and Leonard saying that if the Clippers would be able to get George then he would sign there. The Clippers were able to get George and now Kawhi has decided to sign with Los Angeles.

What does this mean for Russell Westbrook who definitely wants to win now and now the team has gotten rid of his running mate? It has been said that the OKC Thunder star guard is not happy in OKC either. Westbrook may be traded also.

Westbrook has not requested a trade so the team still has him. Westbrook has been with the Thunder his whole career and he is the longest-tenured player with one team. Maybe they will be able to resolve the problems that they have with him.

The Thunder looked to be revamping their bench and building depth to team up with George and Westbrook. They now will have to move on without Paul George.

With this trade, you can that George didn’t think the OKC Thunder would be able to win a championship and he wanted to try a different route with a different running mate. George and Leonard are the two best two-way players in the league. They now are on the same team.

This squad has not been able to get out of the first round in three years. It looks like a boiling point has been reached with the players. There just is not the belief that they will be able to pull it off.

This team still has players. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a good rookie season and he will be a great addition to the Thunder. Gallinari is a career 37.6 3-point shooter. The Thunder have added the shooter that they needed.

They still have the perimeter defense of Andre Roberson which will also help the team greatly. They have three young players in Terrance Ferguson, Hamidou Diallo and Darius Bazley to develop. As long as young have young players that means your team has upside to be great in the future.

Jerami Grant has been developing and Steven Adams is still there so there are still veterans that can be relied upon.

Yes, the loss of George is a heartbreaking loss for the team and fans but Westbrook is still there with a unit that should provide more help than 2016-17 when Westbrook won MVP.

As long as this team still has Westbrook they will be a contender and if they don’t it looks like it will be time to rebuild.