After losing Kevin Durant to the Golden State Warriors a year ago, the Oklahoma City Thunder helped Russell Westbrook by trading for Carmelo Anthony and Paul George. Along with only giving up role players for the two All-Stars, Westbrook signed his five-year, $205 million contract extension before training camp.
With Oklahoma City forming a big three of their own, the question is whether Westbrook, George, and Anthony can play together. After their preseason debut together, the reigning league Most Valuable Player had a message to basketball fans and the media according to Erik Horne of NewsOK:
“I think one thing (that’s) key for everybody to know, especially you guys … you guys keep asking about the chemistry every damn day … we’re gonna get it together,” Westbrook said. “It’s a season-long thing. It’s not gonna happen overnight.
“If you keep asking us every day, it’s not gonna change. We’re gonna get it together. We’re professionals. This is something we obviously want to see work and make it happen, so it’s gonna be a process.”
After leading their respective former teams for so many seasons, there will be an adjustment period for Anthony and George. However, considering what each player has gone through recently in terms of team success, the expectation is they will find a way to make it work.
Heading into the 2017-18 NBA season, the only question is if the Thunder are good enough to dethrone the defending champion Warriors. If the Warriors remain relatively healthy, they are expected to win their third championship in four NBA Finals appearances, but teams like the Thunder are hoping to shock the basketball world.
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