A good piece by newsok’s Anthony Slater in the Friday edition on this very topic. Namely…how the Oklahoma City Thunder were supplanted as the darlings and heir champions post the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs’ reigns.
Putting aside OKC traded their third most valuable player in James Harden, and Golden State ultimately made the right choice in not trading Klay Thompson, the Warriors draft class of 2012 looms as the primary reason Golden State is now on the cusp of a repeat championship while Durant, Westbrook, Presti, and the Thunder remain in search of their first ring.
In this one class, Golden State snared two starters and a key substitute in Harrison Barnes, Draymond Green, and Festus Ezeli.
As haunting as the Harden trade remains to this day to many Thunder fans, this is probably more why the Thunder have yet to win a championship while the Warriors have soared to historical heights.
The ultimate irony is Sam Presti and the Thunder passed on Draymond Green late in the first round, and instead took Perry Jones from Baylor with their pick. Later in the draft, Golden State selected Green with a second round pick.
Perry Jones was traded to the Boston Celtics this past summer with OKC getting little in return. Jones was later waived by the Celtics and is no longer in the league.
Meanwhile, Draymond Green has become the second most important player on the Warriors’ roster. Harrison Barnes has become a solid starter and Festus Ezeli has become an excellent sub for Andrew Bogut at the center position.