I’ve already written on here this wasn’t the end of the Thunder being a championship contender with a window still open on that regard.
So, yeah, I’m pretty much on board with Sam Presti’s comments. He’s going to have to make several difficult decisions to keep the Thunder under the second apron. But if JDub can put an end to his chronic hamstring issues next season I think the Chet issue will take care of itself.
From my view…I’ve always stated JDub is the best athlete-two way player on the roster…and that includes Shai. His body type and freakish reach would have been beyond valuable in game planning for Wemby.
For me…Chet, putting aside the emotional flameout versus Wemby was always a roll of the dice because of his frail, feeble body type and his penchant for games missed due to injury.
I just don’t think at the end Sam Presti will be able to afford a max deal on a player who’s body isn’t suited for the marathon run of an 82-game regular season and deep playoff runs.
I just don’t seen any common, pragmatic sense attached to that doctrine. Kind of like the risk-reward. Think back to all the championships Michael Jordan won with nothing but run of the mill centers on those Bull teams. Think about the four rings Steph won with run of the mill centers on those Warrior teams.
What I would do eventually with Chet is trade him to an Eastern Conference team and get a couple of guys or one guy who can play the center position with the body type and mobility to play the pace the Thunder want to play with their defense in regards to pace and creating turnovers into transition points.
There’s no need for any rocket science here. Just a solid nuanced retouching of the Thunder roster.
Sam Presti and Coach Mark shouldn’t panic…just get JDub healthy.
Mike J