Heh. The title of this thread is sorta a joke. We traded the #5 pick for Ray Allen last year. As a mild Sonics fan (I live in Seattle) I hated the trade at the time for both teams. Prior to trading for KG, the Allen trade seemed like a desperation move for the Celtics. For the Sonics it seemed foolish to trade away a perfect mentor for Durant... and I didn't understand using the pick on Jeff Green. I figured Yi Jianlian was a much better choice.
Guess I was pretty wrong.
Anyone following the worst team in the league? Their three youngsters sure have been pretty impressive.
Durant last month: 25.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.5 steals, 1.3 blocks. 47% shooting. 42% from three. He's off to a big start this month too... Ever since they switched him to his natural position, he's been amazing. He looks like he'll be a 30 and 10 guy shortly down the road. His stats are definitely on the rise, but overall he's currently sitting as statistically the 26th best player in the league. He's 20 years old... I wanted to compare him to Melo at the same age until I realized... he's probably already better than Melo at his current age.
Russell Westbrook is a surprise too. I thought that pick was going to be a bust. Last month: 15.5 points, 5.1 assists, 5.1 rebounds, 1.3 steals. 46% shooting. Another 20 year old. Maybe that kid is going to be good afterall. His big game against the Knicks last night helped the Thunder get a rare win (22 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds).
And then Jeff Green. Also big last month averaging 18 points and 7 rebounds on 50% shooting. His overall stats this season are pretty solid. I checked it out and he's currently statistically the 73rd best player in the league. I found it interesting that the person sitting one spot ahead of him was none other than Ray Allen.
Ray Allen: 17.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, .8 steals with 48% shooting
Jeff Green: 16.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.2 steals with 46% shooting.
Obviously that trade worked out for both teams. We won a title and the Thunder get a guy who is 11 years younger putting up the same production (Green will likely leapfrog Ray by the end of the season if he keeps up his progression). Granted, the Thunder Trio have some inflated stats and minutes due to their team being terrible while Ray is sacrificing stats for the good of the team, but it's still some interesting stuff.
I dunno what to make of the Thunder, though. Seems like a poorly constructed roster. Durant obviously has to stay at SF, but now aren't they sorta playing Jeff Green out of position at PF? And is Westbrook a PG or an undersized SG? It'll be interesting to see if they are forced to make a trade down the road if they end up drafting a legit PF like Blake Griffin.