The Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers are closely linked to each other, both in the present and the future.
With the full draft-pick implications of the teams’ 2019 trade that sent Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and other picks to the Thunder in exchange for Paul George, that won’t be going away anytime soon.
As the clubs return from the NBA All-Star break, George and the Clippers play Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder on Thursday in Oklahoma City.
The Thunder’s core players, Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, and Jalen Williams—who Oklahoma City selected in the 2022 draft with a pick obtained in the 2019 trade—remain the major players, but they’ll also introduce at least one new player on Thursday.
It is anticipated that Gordon Hayward, who joined Oklahoma City earlier this month via a trade deadline transaction from Charlotte, will play in his debut game.
Regarding his new squad, Hayward remarked, “I think the poise that they’ve shown for such young players is unique.” “It goes without saying that having players like Shai and Williams who can win a game on their own is beneficial. All appear to be doing their jobs, though.
“They were rolling long before I got here, so I’m not trying to disrupt that.”
Hayward has been sidelined since December 26 due to a calf issue. But he’s prepared to leave now.
With 28 games left, assuming nothing catastrophic happens, the Thunder will make their first postseason appearance since 2020.
“That’s a lot of time, not only for integrating him, but also to understand we’ve had a nice season to this point, but it’s not even close to over,” Mark Daigneault, the Thunder’s coach, said. “It is imperative that we all keep pushing forward and keep getting better. It entails working with him and Bismack (Biyombo), who was just signed, as well as carrying on with our current work while also growing and developing new things.”
The Clippers have improved since their difficult start to the season; going into the break, they had won 19 of their previous 24 games.
James Harden, the former guard acquired by the Clippers from the Thunder in a deal with Philadelphia on November 1, has been a major contributor to the team’s success.
In addition to averaging 8.4 assists, Harden is hitting a career-high 42.1 percent from beyond the arc.
Even though Harden, George, and Kawhi Leonard are leading the Clippers, the fan response for another former Thunder player is expected to be the greatest.
Whenever Russell Westbrook returns to Oklahoma City, where he played for 11 seasons, he is met with standing ovations.
“For me, it feels like home,” Westbrook remarked in December. “This is where I grew up. They extended a warm welcome to my family and me. Every night, they showed me everything they had, and I returned the favour.”
Harden is having flashbacks to his time spent developing alongside Westbrook and Kevin Durant with the current Thunder squad.
“It’s stunning,” Harden remarked. “It’s been a long time as far as the rebuilding process, but I think it’s exciting.”
The final of the teams’ three regular-season games is this Thursday’s encounter.
Oklahoma City has defeated the Clippers five times in a row at home, while the two teams have drawn their first two meetings.