The OKC Thunder have traded Chris Paul to the Phoenix Suns for a massive haul, and they have the Russell Westbrook trade to thank for it.
The OKC Thunder have pulled off the biggest trade (so far) of the NBA’s transaction period by sending Chris Paul to the Phoenix Suns. With this trade, the Suns immediately become a favorite to make the playoffs in the ultra-competitive Western Conference and may even be able to make some noise once they get there.
In order to even be able to make this deal in the first place, Thunder general manager Sam Presti had to work some magic in a transaction with then-Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey a season ago. Paul was with the Rockets and Morey needed to move him, and the Thunder were in a predicament themselves after Paul George demanded and received a trade to the LA Clippers to join Kawhi Leonard.
When George left, All-Star guard Russell Westbrook, Presi and the rest of the Thunder organization saw that the writing was on the wall, and contending for titles was no longer a possibility. The Thunder wanted to move Westbrook, but the Rockets felt they had no choice but to move Paul.
Daryl Morey is a genius, but you can’t beat Sam Presti when he holds the leverage advantage.
So Morey and the Rockets got fleeced. Westbrook was traded to the Rockets for Paul, and along with Chris Paul the Rockets sent back their 2024 and 2026 first-round picks (top-four protected) and 2021 and 2025 pick swaps. Then Paul went out and had an All-Star season, leading his Thunder to the NBA playoffs and putting a massive scare into the Rockets themselves in a seven-game loss that came down to a last-second OKC miss.
After the 2019-20 season ended, the Thunder decided it was time to cash in on their massive stockpile of assets and conduct a rebuild. They parted ways with head coach Billy Donovan and Paul hit the trade market. Recently, some mutual interest was sparked between Paul and the Phoenix Suns.
One thing led to another, as happens in trade negotiations, and Paul was traded on the first day of transaction activity to the Suns. In exchange for Paul and Abdul Nader, the Suns will send back Ricky Rubio, Kelly Oubre Jr., Ty Jerome and Jalen Lecque, as well as a top-12 protected 2022 first-round pick. That draft pick converts to top-10 in 2023, top-eight in 2024 and becomes unprotected in 2025 if it doesn’t convey before that.
All in all, as things stand now, Russell Westbrook will have netted the OKC Thunder first-round draft picks in 2022, 2024 and 2026, as well as those 2021 and 2025 pick swaps, and Rubio, Oubre, Jerome and Lecque. On the flip side of the coin, the Rockets are currently trying to ship Westbrook out of town at his request, and doing so will almost certainly require attaching positive assets in order to find takers.
It’s hard to find a trade in NBA history which so gloriously rewarded one franchise while crippling the hopes of the other. If there’s a lesson in all of this, it’s to never negotiate with Sam Presti when he knows you need to make a deal, or else.