Since the Harden trade, OKC has tried to fill Harden’s role of sixth man and Russell Westbrook’s co-pilot in late game sets with Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb, Reggie Jackson, and currently Dion Waiters.
Kevin Martin was okay as a one year rental. Jeremy Lamb had confidence swings and never got untracked. Reggie Jackson was actually pretty good, but like Harden wanted a starring role on his own team , and Dion Waiters has struggled with game to game consistency. It’s not hard to envision Cam Payne being pretty good in this role down the road though. I could very well see Payne expanding his game next season and being a pretty good fit with Durant and Westbrook to close games and man the second unit as well.
People sometimes forget just how impactful James Harden was in the Thunder’s run to the NBA Finals in 2012. The Harden-Collison two man game was beautiful to watch. Two smart players.