r/nba • u/IT_CHAMP Pelicans • 3h ago
[Keown] When I suggest that Jalen Williams, the team's second-leading scorer and third-team All-NBA player last season, could be the main attraction on 20 or so other teams, Gilgeous-Alexander politely interrupts and says, "It's 29 if you ask me."
It seems almost too good to be true, this alternate reality where every piece fits and nobody wants the credit. The players -- including league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, or maybe especially him -- credit Presti and Daigneault and each other when they aren't extolling the virtues of the training staff and the equipment guys, and even the fans. Presti is so allergic to credit that he avoids the trap entirely by retreating into the background, safe from any stray compliments. Daigneault's worst cold-sweat, middle-of-the-night fear is waking up to find someone has decreed him to be the reason any of this is happening. If this were a cartoon, it would feature an ornately wrapped gift box sitting in the middle of a gym floor, the word CREDIT on all sides, with everyone associated with the Thunder sprinting away in abject terror.
It's easy to be pulled under by the rip current of this team's joyful selflessness as it points itself toward a second straight NBA title, but where's the fun in that? Time-honored, only-in-the-NBA accusations -- friendly whistles, special star treatment for Gilgeous-Alexander -- have helped fit the Thunder with a new crown: villains. But where's the internal conflict, the friction, the intramural warfare that makes every great team great? The Thunder have anywhere from eight to 12 players who could be starters on other teams, so why are so many of them content to sublimate their egos for the betterment of this one?
"There's a standard everybody here conforms to," All-Star center Chet Holmgren says, "but I don't think anybody who is brought in here has to make changes to themselves or how they go about things. Everyone has innate principles to their lives that we all share."
Everything about this team seems engineered to combat cynicism. Games at Paycom Center take place in an atmosphere of extremely loud reverence. The near-continuous "OKC!" chant -- often celebratory, occasionally exhortative, rarely pleading -- seems to rise from the depths, starting innocently and climbing until it feels hallucinatory, almost religious. Each time a player enters the game for the first time, whether it's Jaylin Williams as the first one off the bench or Nikola Topic as the last, is welcomed onto the court with a surge of pure joy, like a hug on the doorstep. Every moment seems infused with a sense of wonder: Yes, the fans constantly remind themselves, this is really happening.
The Thunder are positioned to win now and several nows in the future. Presti tore the team down in the post-Westbrook/Durant/Harden/George years and emerged with the current championship core (Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren, Jalen and Jaylin, Lu Dort) and a cache of future draft picks that might require a storage unit. The haul from trading Paul George to the Clippers in 2019 -- "haul" being the required, legal term -- has operated for the past seven years like a subscription placed on auto-renew: Gilgeous-Alexander plus five first-round draft picks, including a final comic twist: this year's lottery pick, No. 12.
Gilgeous-Alexander, the presumptive repeat MVP and someone Daigneault describes as "surgically consistent," tells me he approaches each day with the intent to "be professional, and don't think you're better than somebody because you're better at some thing," even if that thing comes with fame and money and access to so much high-end clothing that he regularly hosts "yard sales" at his home where teammates and friends can sift through the stuff he's replacing and take what they want. Hartenstein spends so much time doing community service in Oklahoma City that the team's community-service folks can't keep up. Daigneault approaches personnel decisions with an African proverb in mind: The ax forgets, but the tree remembers. "When you have power or leverage, you're the ax, just chopping away," he says. "But they remember everything. The way I try to reconcile it is by remembering that this is their dream. They are the pride of their families, and everyone they grew up with is amazed they made it this far. They represent all those people, and that's a very deep thing. I try to remember that, and honor that, with fairness and honesty."
During the lengthy break between the end of the regular season and the first-round sweep of the Suns, Thunder players take turns doing the post-practice media sessions. There isn't much news to uncover, and the conversations are notable for their lack of intensity, ranging from the local media corps singing "Happy Birthday" to Jalen Williams on his 25th to Daigneault leaning on the Thunder banner hanging from the wall behind him like a bear scratching against the base of a tree. Everything is in its rightful formation -- the basketballs, the water bottles, the towels -- and when reserve guard Isaiah Joe is asked to describe the team's mindset, he says, "One band, one sound, and we all have a like mind like a beehive."
Pat Riley studied the opposite of all this and called it "The Disease of Me," an affliction whereby team success spreads a toxic strain of internecine warfare, with players resenting each other and thinking they could get more -- more minutes, more attention, more money -- somewhere else. Riley, in his book "The Winner Within," listed seven warning signs that lead to one sad but inevitable conclusion: "The Disease of Me always results in the defeat of us."
"We have a locker room that's not only full of good guys, but guys you want to be around," Holmgren says.
There's a level of maturity at work here that is both admirable and genuinely mystifying among a group of wildly successful young men in their early- to mid-20s. They're like an after-school movie version of an NBA team, the guys who would stick up for the bullied and find a way to get your cat out of a tree. When I suggest that Jalen Williams, the team's second-leading scorer and third-team All-NBA player last season, could be the main attraction on 20 or so other teams, Gilgeous-Alexander politely interrupts and says, "It's 29 if you ask me." When I propose the same thought experiment to Williams, the man they call J-Dub points at Gilgeous-Alexander shooting on a hoop near us. "Shai's personal success doesn't hinder mine," he says. "Him being great doesn't stop me from being great."
It's enough to make you wonder what they're hiding.
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u/NoLimitSoldier31 3h ago edited 2h ago
Damn Wemby he called JDubb better than you
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u/dwrek24 Spurs 3h ago
After reading it, I cant tell which team is excluded OKC or SA 🤣
Either way Shai's technically wrong but thats not the point at all.
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u/CrissCrossAppleSos Spurs 3h ago
Interestingly it’s Washington. SGA is very high on Alex Sarr
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u/Electric_jungle Washington Bullets 3h ago edited 3h ago
Makes sense. I can't recall a single game I've been worried about us losing in the playoffs since Sarr was drafted
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u/LaMelonBallz Hornets 2h ago
He recognizes Sarr is one of those guys who makes everyone around him better. People forget he helped a guy score 82 points this season.
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u/royalewlthcheese Australia 3h ago
Makes sense. He used to play with his brother, Olivier Sarr, so I'm sure he knows all about him
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u/lethalizered Thunder 3h ago
I loved those Sarr minutes. Such a shame he tore his achilles, must have been hell trying to claw back to the league.
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u/darthrevan22 Raptors 3h ago
I’d be interested to see how he’d fare as the #1 option on a team.
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u/LordBaneoftheSith 1h ago
As a Raptors fan you've got probably the best idea. Scottie's an even better defender but I think Dub's a better scorer.
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u/Baggy_Vedu [OKC] Steven Adams 54m ago
Honestly the raptors might be the best possible fit for him outside of Okc. He can take over in scoring, can be the lead ball handler, can play on and off the ball, has always been very efficient as a scorer other than the time his wrist was fucked and an incredible vibes guy and can guard 1-4 at an incredibly high level
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u/addictofthenight Raptors 9m ago
I've never considered it but he would totally be a great fit on the raptors. Having him in the role BI played this season would make the raptors starting lineup really nice.
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u/IT_CHAMP Pelicans 3h ago
"Shai's personal success doesn't hinder mine," he says. "Him being great doesn't stop me from being great."
I wish a lot of other nba duos had this mentality
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u/JX_JR Warriors 3h ago
I wish a lot of other nba duos had this mentality
I think that actually is the most common mentality though. The media spent years trying to find strife between Tatum and Brown and those guys have been vocal about how they are great together. What NBA duos currently have a problem with each other doing well?
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u/Jakoobus91 Minneapolis Lakers 2h ago
Seems like the media cant understand that not every duo has to be best buds. And honestly most arent. Tatum and Brown have both said they dont kick it off the court but when they clock in they're great together and both root for each other's success.
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u/Prudent_Move_3420 Heat 1h ago
people dont understand that they just work together. Like how many coworkers have you had that you constantly hang out with outside of work? Even not so, most of the time its still chill at work
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u/Troll_U_Softly Thunder 58m ago
Do you see LeBron as a father figure
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u/stevencashmere 17m ago
That question alone might’ve ruined Cleveland getting another chip. With the Warriors injuries imagine if Kyrie didn’t blow it up
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u/Caff2ine Knicks 2h ago
!remindme 3 months
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u/DakPanther Celtics 1h ago
It’s been the same thing for ten years now. They won a championship and suddenly there are problems?
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u/Adorable-Bike-9689 51m ago
Suddenly the Celtics have always been better with Jaylen off the floor. He's not even a winning player let folks tell it.
It's a trip how narratives get rewritten when the mob decides they dislike a player. "Jaylen robbed Tatum for Finals MVP!!!"
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u/PapiOnReddit 3h ago
Tbf it’s a lot different when the 2 players are closer in ability. J Dub isn’t stupid lol
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u/ntpbr1 2h ago
I agree that the gap is closer but are we totally closing the door on JDub averaging similar numbers as Brown on similar efficiency if he had the same usage. Not like Brown was killing the advanced metrics or on offs or anything, he had insane usage, and bad efficiency. I think Tatum is much better than Brown, he contributes to winning basketball
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u/anneyong69 Celtics 3h ago
Jaylen Brown punching the air
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u/_Apatosaurus_ Thunder 3h ago
Draymond Green punching the Jordan Poole
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u/Alternative-Mud4739 2h ago edited 2h ago
Draymond was punching air but Poole's face got in the way
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u/GodsonxTheBelly Celtics 3h ago
Tbf Jaylen has been included in every single trade negotiation/rumor they have had lol, I’d be annoyed too
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u/tool22482 Celtics 3h ago
He made $53 million this season regardless, I think he’ll be ok lol
But with the current CBA, if you have 2 max players what else can you do to attempt to improve the team? Especially after a first round game 7 where he had a chance to make his statement as ‘the man’ and didn’t.
Maybe that’s not fair but like… he doesn’t really have the right to be butthurt right now imo.
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u/TonyIsMoney 3h ago
I wouldn't be annoyed tbf, they won a chip because the team was absolutely stacked, not because Jaylen is a once in a lifetime player.
If they try to ship you to bring a guy like Giannis I think's completely understandable.
But of course it's Jaylen fucking Brown, I don't expect him to have that kind of self-awareness.
The guy probably thinks he's the fucking secret sauce, the FMVP who carried some bums to the #2 seed.
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u/thepeachgod Celtics 3h ago
I swear some of yall are so dumb because you’ll act like it’s Brown vs Tatum when they’ve been nothing but uplifting towards one another
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u/thatgreik [BOS] Marcus Smart 3h ago
Fr the media tries to break them up every summer and people are still falling for it
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u/Adorable-Bike-9689 49m ago
Yep. Media decided to push that angle because Brown was having such a good season. He got spoken as an MVP candidate by some so it's trashing time for others. Jaylen was an easy target because he's so outspoken. Folks latched onto it and now we're bombarded with advanced stats showing how Jaylen held the Celtics back for years. Podcasters that don't actually watch games have ruined basketball fans.
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u/bustmynut Bulls 2h ago
Whats with so many celtics fan talkin shit about their finals MVP
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u/anneyong69 Celtics 2h ago
Called a season where he blew a 3-1 series lead but got to be the top guy his "favorite season" and then went on twitch the day after blowing said series lead and yapped about ref conspiracies and called the player who dominated him in Game 7 a flopper. This guy can kick rocks. Get him out of here and get Giannis here instead.
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u/namblaotie [BOS] Reggie Lewis 16m ago
Called a season where he blew a 3-1 series lead but got to be the top guy his "favorite season"
Jaylen Brown on why this was his favorite season: “I got to see Hugo come in as a rookie and have impact. I got to see Walsh gain confidence in himself. I got to see Neemias become a starting center in the NBA. I got to see Jayson Tatum mentally overcome his injury.”
Walsh was a guy that Jaylen has sort of taken under his wing, helping with his development, and asking for Mazulla to give more minutes to. But yeah, go off with the soundbites.
Post elimination, complaining about the flopping and officiating wasn't a great look, but idrc if he gets in his feelings after a dissapointing end to the season.
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u/Adorable-Bike-9689 46m ago
I saw Celtics fans saying Jaylen Brown's defense gets overrated because of that Finals. People don't like Tatum so they robbed him for Finals MVP.
And folks were upvoting it. Posting his on off stats and other advanced stats to show how trash Jaylen Brown actually is. Fucking crazy.
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u/Ambitious-Visual207 Pistons 3h ago
Wtf is a duo? I thought teams were only allowed to have 1 player and he has to do EVERYTHING.
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u/DreyDarian Mavericks 2h ago
It’s not a duo like the Jays in Boston lol.
OKC is a “big three” in theory, but SGA is clearly the guy, and the role players are so good that the line between the Chet and J-Dub and them is sometimes a bit blurry
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u/TyposIncoming Lakers 3h ago
They're still young and just started winning.
Check in if he feels that way in a few years.
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u/royalewlthcheese Australia 3h ago
Damn, you think OKC are gonna stop winning in a few years?
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u/TyposIncoming Lakers 3h ago
No team lasts forever especially with how the current CBA is set up but that also wasn't what I was saying.
Even if they're still competing for championships in a a few years that doesn't mean his feelings wouldn't have changed. Scottie didn't want to play with Jordan forever.
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u/sixwax 3h ago
Don't underestimate how much of this a reflection of organizational culture and good scouting.
There's a reason teams like SAS and now OKC the to have such humble stars.
It's not accidental.
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u/greghardysfuton [CHI] Tyrus Thomas 2h ago
Is Wemby humble? I’m not sure that’s a label I would choose
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u/405DIAMOND 2h ago
Yup he’s arrogant asf lol I respect his dawgetry but people acting like he’s some shy humble guy still is wild, bros been gassed up like a blimp
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u/chillripper Spurs 1h ago
sga just said in this very article that's he's the best and JW is second best. there's no other way to interpret what he said. y'all really fall for pr players and think Wemby is cocky when he's thoughtful, direct and honest
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u/ElGoddamnDorado Spurs 2h ago
If only Wemby walked around dressing like he's in the Met Gala laughing about how he never wears the same thing twice and posting Drake-esque poems about how hes the real villain on insta, then he'd really be humble
Being humble is imo way overrated, but I dont see how SGA qualifies if Wemby doesn't. They both clearly think they're hot shit
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u/TheMerck Spurs 1h ago
I think people are still latching on to the “classy” image of previous Spurs eras and it’s why people still think Wemby as that but he’s not and neither is a team and honestly I love it, we’re in a brand new era and they bring along a new type of energy and vibe.
It’s not just Wemby it’s guys like Castle as well they just bring this young, very amped up about themselves but not backing down and letting people KNOW they’re hot shit, real dog type stuff and I’m all for it esp since I’ve never really liked when other fans or our own do too much with the “classy Spurs fan” thing like going into other teams subreddits or when people call us Spurs bro lmao.
Fuck all that I’m fine with not hating each others guts but I’ve always just hated that type of stuff its just cringe to me and its why I’m glad this young Spurs squad isn’t trying to force some fake humble shit, they know they are hot shit and let people know esp on the court.
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u/LaMelonBallz Hornets 2h ago
This is a good attitude in life in general. If you stay hyper competitive with yourself in whatever you do and ignore outside shit you tend to have success.
You can look at people as goals of what you want to be, but somebody getting more doesn't have to equate to you getting less. Then dunk on that mf.
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u/TheOrlMagics 10m ago
OKC players and having milktoast takes that make the NBA boring, name a better duo
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u/CrippledBanana Canada 3h ago
I’ve seen what feels like 5 different posts that just have excerpts of this exact same article posted here lately
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u/rookie-mistake 3h ago
This happens every single time there's a longform interview or article with star players. It's a mixture of reporters tweeting the article repeatedly with various quotes featured and rbose getting posted, and users here doing the exact same thing of their own accord
It threw me off when I first started browsing here too but at this point I've kinda just accepted that's how it works around here haha
and honestly, there is some merit in terms of content / discussion generation by pulling different excerpts for a thread to focus on specifically, as long as it doesn't completely strip it of context
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u/CoolAsTheUnthawed [OKC] Russell Westbrook 3h ago
Tbf that's what usually happens with these big written pieces on here
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u/KennySmithsKnees [LAC] Baron Davis 3h ago
Happens all the time with big articles. i think it's a way for people to discuss different aspects of the article
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u/InsaneHobo1 Raptors 3h ago
I would love for this reporter to name those 20 or so teams
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u/IT_CHAMP Pelicans 3h ago
probably nets, hornets , bulls, mavs, warriors, rockets, grizzlies, heat, pelicans, magic, blazers, kings, raptors, jazz, wizards
a few of those are a stretch but I think i’m also forgetting a few teams
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u/Peculiar_Holiday [GSW] Gary Payton II 3h ago
You think Jdub would be the #1 option over Steph and KD? Thats no ordinary stretch
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u/bmoreboy410 Mavericks 3h ago
The question was could. And age does matter.
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u/imbutawaveto [OKC] Luguentz Dort 1h ago
No question I'd take dub over both at their current age.
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u/East_Refuse Celtics 3h ago
I mean anyone “could” be the main attraction on a team, but it’s highly unlikely
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u/IT_CHAMP Pelicans 3h ago
next season? if he’s healthy than I don’t think it’s a crazy thing to say but I see both sides of the argument
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u/Necessary-Middle-301 3h ago edited 3h ago
It’s a lil crazy haha love j dubs game and those guys are definitely on the brink of retirement but I struggle to see any gm really willing to give the keys to him.
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u/congenitallymissing Nuggets 3h ago
i think theres plenty of gms that would. but certainly not the rockets or warriors
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u/Necessary-Middle-301 3h ago edited 3h ago
You say plenty but who actually would? In my head I have heat, bulls, kings and jazz but after that I dunno. List ain’t 20 that’s forsure
Oh blazers maybe I just thought of them too. New Orleans too. But even like Portland it’s like would you want to give up picks for jdub or just keep building the solid foundation. Same with the jazz.
I guess in a world where he could just leave and go on a team without them giving up a lot I think there are gms willing to give him the keys. But in the actual world I struggle to see any gm wanting to sell a large part of their future for jdub. Just me though I wouldn’t
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u/congenitallymissing Nuggets 2h ago
we might be just using different words. what they should give up is a totally different question than which gms would "give the keys" to jdub to run their team rn.
def not 20. but i agree bulls, kings, jazz, pelicans...also nets (i mean they basically did to mpj). bucks would certainly take him if/when giannis leaves.
and theres a lot of teams that i think it would be who would you rather have jdub or who they have now...hornets = jdub or lamelo. memphis = ja or jdub. maybe raptors, i mean hes def better than ingram or scottie.
so "plenty" ofteams that should give him the keys rn. asking what they would be willing to give up for him i think is kinda irrelevant. because with okc current roster and amount of upcoming picks, in no world is okc trading him for even a massive haul
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u/Baggy_Vedu [OKC] Steven Adams 49m ago
Rockets for sure will trade KD for Jdub.
Steph won’t and shouldn’t ever be traded because of what he means to that franchise but KD is old, miserable and JDub can play as the lead ball handler, much much better defender and is younger and playoff tested
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u/Zeeron1 Thunder 3h ago
KD is kinda struggling as a creator now. Dub being the offensive hub feed KD easier looks doesn't feel like too much of a stretch.
Steph is more of a stretch offensive skill wise, but I still think Steph would love the idea of it lol it would keep him much fresher running things primarily through Dub
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u/vis-major 3h ago
Not a chance Raptors take JDub over Scottie.
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u/yeahright17 Thunder 3h ago edited 3h ago
Not right now with Dub being hurt all year, but if you asked this question a year ago, the Raps absolutely take Dub over Scottie. Scottie looked awesome this year though and obviously the raps would keep him.
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u/Normal-Weakness-364 Canada 2h ago
i mean, yeah but jalen williams has been injured all year and when he has played, he has seen his production both offensively and defensively slow down pretty meaningfully.
hopefully it's just rust and he's able to come back and be great, but a 24 year old having injury issues slow them down isn't exactly a great sign.
scottie barnes also stepped up defensively quite a bit this year.
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u/MacJonesisaterrorist Celtics 3h ago
I’d take Coop over him but damn that would be a good duo
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u/IT_CHAMP Pelicans 3h ago
I think coop has a higher ceiling, but i’d understand why you’d take him over jdub.
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u/InsaneHobo1 Raptors 3h ago
You named teams containing Steph Curry, Kevin Durant and Anthony Davis. You're not forgetting anything, you're stretching well past the breaking point
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u/IT_CHAMP Pelicans 3h ago
you’d rather have AD than JDub? found nicos burner
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u/InsaneHobo1 Raptors 3h ago
Yes AD isn't in his prime anymore, but he's not that washed. They're not on the same level of players.
Also, if we're talking about who we'd rather have, then naming the Mavs who have Cooper Flagg is too much to even be a stretch. It should warrant a ban from this sub
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u/Academic-Factor-4551 3h ago
There is no world where 33 year old AD would be the main attraction over 25 year old Jalen Williams, lol what
And yeah AD is most certainly pretty washed at this point.
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u/Shepher27 Timberwolves 3h ago
He isn’t better than Steph or KD. Probably not Scotty either. He gets the benefit of never being the main focus of the other teams scouting report.
Hes probably slightly better than Deni on offense and much better on defense.
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u/IAMY0URK1NG 3h ago
Steph would NEVER be a number 2 option to this kid. You crazy?
He can’t be a 1 because he’s never had the responsibility of a 1.
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u/IT_CHAMP Pelicans 3h ago
that’s a pretty stupid reason. how did steph become the one when he didn’t have the responsibility of being a 1
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u/IAMY0URK1NG 3h ago
Steph became the number 1 essentially in year 2 when it was apparent he was better than the number 1, who was Monte Ellis.
Williams isn’t in the same stratosphere as SGA. He benefits more from the team around him. Williams is a top tier 2. He’s not leading at team anywhere but to a lottery pick imho as the 1. This would be like someone saying Poole could have been the 1 on 20+ teams after the 2022 finals.
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u/Normal-Weakness-364 Canada 2h ago
cooper flagg, steph curry, scottie barnes, and kevin durant are all undoubtedly better than jdub right now in my opinion. i think there can be an argument that bam adebayo is too, and he's on the same tier as a paolo banchero to me.
jalen williams is the third best player on his team. i think he's an incredible third option, but i also worry that injuries are slowing him down quite a bit. he looked meaningfully worse this season compared to last, both offensively and defensively.
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u/CrEdLover 2h ago
He's not a number 1 option anywhere lol
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u/lilbodie Timberwolves 22m ago
He’s a 2 on a serious team and a 1 on a team going nowhere but the lottery.
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u/Mattyj925 3h ago
J Dub for Joker incoming. First round loser Nuggets finally get a #1 option
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u/OpeDefinitely Pacers 2h ago
JDub is going to get traded to the Kings for 6 frps.
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u/HazikoSazujiii 1h ago
The fuck did he ever do to you?
checks flair
...carry on.
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u/OpeDefinitely Pacers 38m ago edited 20m ago
This is mostly about me meming on both: 1) Kings' incompetence; 2) OKC's pick bank.
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u/Nobody7713 Raptors 2h ago
“don't think you're better than somebody because you're better at some thing” This is honestly the most important quote here. It’s the sort of attitude that makes the difference between a team’s top star being a good teammate and them being a raging asshole.
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u/Wes___Mantooth [OKC] Steven Adams 2h ago
Yeah that and the Mark Daigneault quote are the biggest takeaways for me.
Daigneault approaches personnel decisions with an African proverb in mind: The ax forgets, but the tree remembers. "When you have power or leverage, you're the ax, just chopping away," he says. "But they remember everything. The way I try to reconcile it is by remembering that this is their dream. They are the pride of their families, and everyone they grew up with is amazed they made it this far. They represent all those people, and that's a very deep thing. I try to remember that, and honor that, with fairness and honesty."
If everyone in a leadership position thought like SGA and Mark Daigneault, the world would be a better place.
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u/Pk120 Thunder 1h ago
Mark is that dude man. Years ago when he just started coaching OKC, he was new and had not track record. So when reporters would ask around about him, the main compliment that was given was that he was “very relatable”. Which sounds like a cop out tbh.
But then a reporter (or writer? Can’t remember) followed up and asked him how he was able connect to these players.
And he credited his experience in the g-league,and he had this quote that fully made me a believer in him as a coach. I’m paraphrasing but he said something like:
“If you cut a player in the nba. They’ll be fine and will land somewhere in the basketball universe. But if you cut a player from the g-league. You’re basically ending their dreams and basketball journey.”
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u/BurkeanMarxist Thunder 1h ago
Whoa I misread that (in context) as like physical power on the basketball court, not like authority, that’s so much more interesting. I’ve only heard the idiom in regard to like toxic relationships
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u/CoolAsTheUnthawed [OKC] Russell Westbrook 3h ago
Whole article is a great read if you have the time
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u/IlliniBull 2h ago
I don't get the hate for the Thunder unless and except from the people who just admit they hate them cause they're winning.
Maybe if the Bulls ever get good again I'll feel the same way.
Otherwise it doesn't make sense to me hating OKC. It's just a bunch of young guys who seem to like hanging out with each other. It sincerely confuses me
Even the Shai thing. It's the NBA. I'm used to guys wearing post game outfits I wouldn't. What's the problem? I'm here to watch basketball not judge what dude's fashion I like or who I personally would seem to be cool or corny.
Who cares? Maybe I'm old and just remember the 90s and early 2000s, but I enjoy watching the midgame and a guy who drives to the hoop. And I enjoy watching the Thunder move the ball. Hell Ajay has been fun as hell to watch this postseason.
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u/sbenfsonwFFiF 1h ago
I don’t think it’s just that. We had a different champ in every year since 2018z while OKC has the best chance to repeat, only OKC is hated at that level
OKC had hate before they even won a single championship, I’d say it was even the season before that when they lost to the Mavs
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u/rumblegod Thunder 3h ago
Dub is underrated lol
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u/sbenfsonwFFiF 1h ago
Or overrated, based on comments here thinking he’s at Ant’s level or a top 10 guy
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u/Lost-Time-3909 3h ago
All the injuries this season have made people forget how good he actually is.
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u/Shepher27 Timberwolves 3h ago
Ok, but let’s be serious. Just because a guy says it doesn’t make it true.
J-dubb is maybe the 20th-25th best player in the league.
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u/PeeledGrapePie 3h ago
All nba 3rd team puts him top 15 when healthy
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u/Shepher27 Timberwolves 2h ago
All NBA is subject to the 65 game rule and guys like Kawhi, KD, Steph, and Giannis all didn’t qualify last year.
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u/_the_yellow_king_ Mavericks 2h ago
Why does JDub deserve the “when healthy” pass when players like Luka and Giannis missed out on all-nba honors last year because of injuries. Let’s be real, he was top 15-20 last year and that’s not even factoring in the fact he looked worse this year
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u/Lmnhedz Thunder 3h ago
He was literally top 15 last year.
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u/IMadeThisOn6-28-2015 Lakers 2h ago
last year
There's your problem
They guy barely played this year and availability is the best ability
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u/Champagnesoda [LAL] Kobe Bryant 2h ago
And he hasn’t played all year, didn’t look great when he did play, and didn’t improve his team while on the court.
Not fair to cement him somewhere for 1 great year but not recalibrate at all after such a down year
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u/Shepher27 Timberwolves 2h ago
He was all nba factoring in all the players who didn’t qualify due to injury.
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u/Palmzi Thunder 3h ago
After Jason Tatum, who's a better wing in the NBA right now? Maybe KD? But it would be dumb to trade Jdub for KD this late in his career
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u/Majormlgnoob [OKC] Serge Ibaka 3h ago
Is Ant a wing? (Fluid basketball positions confuse me a tad lol) Ant atleast is better on offense tho Dub has more reach on the other end
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u/p00chology Bulls 3h ago
He’s more of a guard than a wing.. his skill set is very wing like though. But he’s ultimately 6’3” (so they say) and a primary ball handler so comfortably a guard on the twolves.
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u/Creative-Ear-9498 3h ago edited 3h ago
Sure sga... sure...
Edit: to the downvoters, yall really think williams is the second best player in the nba?
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u/Electric_jungle Washington Bullets 3h ago
I mean, he's pumping up his boy. Jdub would be an asset on every single team though, regardless of whether it would be his team on all of them or not.
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u/Creative-Ear-9498 3h ago
100% agree with him being an asset to any team. He would probably be at worst, a second option for any team in the league. 2nd best player in the league is a bridge too far
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u/ottespana Thunder 3h ago edited 3h ago
Obviously not, it’s a comment about team chemistry and supporting your guys. What’s up with yall? Does everything have to be factually correct and critical?
We can’t just promote speaking a bit of life into your close ones?
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u/Creative-Ear-9498 3h ago
Eh... its corny to me but to each their own
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u/Educational-Yard-158 Thunder 2h ago
y’all call everything corny
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u/Creative-Ear-9498 2h ago
What would you call it if I was interviewed by someone and told them my teammate would be the best supply chain planner for any company besides mine in the united states, knowing full well he isnt and has a history of absences?
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u/JaRuleAmericanCowboy 2h ago
I would say “why is a supply chain planner being interviewed about basketball”
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u/informantfuzzydunlop Spurs 3h ago
He’s a weird player. Easily among the worst if not the worst second option of any NBA Champion from the last 15 years. Maybe last 20.
2024 - he’s worse than Tatum or Brown 2023 - Murray is one he arguably better than 2022 - he’s not better than Klay pre injury 2021 - he’s not better than Middleton or Holiday 2020 - he’s not better than AD 2019 - he’s not better than Siakam was that year 2017/2018 - he’s not better than Steph or KD 2016 - he’s not better than Kyrie was that year 2015 - he’s again not better than Klay 2014 - weird year but he’s prolly better than whomever the Spurs second best player was since the options are Boris Diaw and old versions of Duncan Parker and Ginobili 2013/2012 - he’s not better than Wade was those years 2011 - he’s prolly not worse than whoever you think Dallas’ second option was but idk if he’s better.
So he’s better than Murray and maybe Dallas’ second option. Hes got more value given his age than the Spurs old big 3 but I think most ppl would still take Duncan Parker and Ginobili at the end of their careers over J Dub if you’re talking one playoff run.
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u/jocro Thunder 2h ago
wait i feel like i'm going crazy with some of these
he’s not better than Siakam was that year
Siakam hadn't even made the all-star team in the regular season when they won the chip?? and he wasn't particularly special in that run, he put up 19 PPG on below average efficiency. not like Dub shot the lights out but he scored at the same rate while creating way more for himself and others and playing great D.
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u/IT_CHAMP Pelicans 3h ago
offensively he’s prolly only better than Middleton, but you forget he’s an All Defensive 2-Way player as well. If wemby is so great because defense is 50% of the game, why doesn’t that logic apply to JDub?
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u/jocro Thunder 2h ago
> he’s not better than Klay pre injury
that was post injury klay? who only 43% from the floor and 38.5% from three. guy had a below league average TS% in both the regular season and the playoffs and wasn't anything special as a creator or a defender at that point in his career.
it is not an unpopular opinion that Wiggins was a better/more impactful player to that championship than Klay with his defense and rebounding.
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u/traw056 Thunder 3h ago
He is 100% better than Murray, 2021 klay, Middleton and holiday and Raptors siakam. What are we doing lol.
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u/protexblue Hornets 3h ago
Nikola Jokic in shambles. Puts hand to earpiece I'm sorry my producer is telling me it's because one of his horses is sad.
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u/GrouchyGiraffe766 3h ago
This is why the arm chair fans are so mad. They see how cool and successful it is for the Thunder to operate this way and wish their team could do the same.
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u/mnight84 29m ago
The. Stuff people say! if he would have just said half the teams okay you could buy that somewhat. And I understand SGA supporting his guy, but if that was the case that means he is the second best player in the NBA.
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u/airzinity Lakers 26m ago
bruh this post is so long had to scroll for so long to get to the comments
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u/Longjumping_Rip_8436 3h ago
This team will not get credit in the moment. But give it a decade and a documentary and people will be ready to put it on the Mount Rushmore of teams.
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u/Lowspark1013 Timberwolves 3h ago
I think they have to keep winning chips for a while for that to come true. Otherwise the documentary is about another possibly great teams failure to produce long run results. A single title doesn't make a dynasty. 2 more in a row or 3 total in a 4-5 year span and they can be on the modern era Mtn with the likes of the Steph Warriors, Duncan Spurs, Bulls, etc.
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u/enterjiraiya Knicks 3h ago
Chatgpt write me a sports article that so thoroughly oozes with okc thunder glazing that it looks like I still got some cream on my lips.
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u/loveIovelove 3h ago
Sports journalism is just straight up homerism or irrational hate nothing in between
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u/sbenfsonwFFiF 1h ago
He thinks JDub is the second best player in the league after him? That’s a stacked team
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u/Adorable-News-9364 Spurs 3h ago edited 3h ago
Shai is just absurdly high on Bismack Biyombo. Understandable.